Struggling tribe too often turns to smuggling pot
The News Review:
- Struggling tribe too often turns to smuggling pot
- Drugs, pit bulls, children and filth: Police arrest 5, find 3…
- Corby retrial hopes rise
- Dallas Morning News | News for Dallas, Texas | Opinion: Points
- Labor unrest at Alitalia cancels 89 more flights
Struggling tribe too often turns to smuggling pot
San Francisco Chronicle – Jan 22, 2006
Lots and lots of pot. Inside, neatly stacked bales of marijuana stand like faceless chess pieces — the evidence from a game of extremes played every day along the nearby Arizona-Mexico border. Anthony Coulson, the U. Drug Enforcement Agency official in charge there, says that as much as 20 percent of the marijuana brought into Arizona last year was discovered in one location: the Tohono O’odham reservation, where abject poverty and the opportunity for a fast buck torment the American Indian nation. In 2000, according to the DEA, some 50,800 pounds of marijuana were seized on Tohono land… Drug Enforcement Agency official in charge there, says that as much as 20 percent of the marijuana brought into Arizona last year was discovered in one location: the Tohono O’odham reservation, where abject poverty and the opportunity for a fast buck torment the American Indian nation. In 2000, according to the DEA, some 50,800 pounds of marijuana were seized on Tohono land. By last year, the figure had soared to 192,225 pounds. Other authorities put the number higher. More and more Tohono themselves, meanwhile, have been caught up in the drug trade. “Young Indians,” says Coulson, “carry it over to drop houses” from which the pot eventually finds its way to the streets.
Drugs, pit bulls, children and filth: Police arrest 5, find 3…
Enid News & Eagle – Jan 22, 2006
After entering the home at 916 E. Oklahoma, police found three children, two adults and eight pit bulls. During the search of the home, police seized marijuana and drug paraphernalia and several kinds of prescription drugs, none of which were in an approved container. Detectives were especially concerned for the welfare of the children, ages 4, 3 and 5 months. All were found sleeping together on the living room floor of the home. The children were sleeping next to “large amounts of dog feces, which also was observed in the every room of the house,” according to the release. Some of the marijuana and drug paraphernalia also was found on the floor and on an end table in the living room, within reach of the three children, according to police… All were found sleeping together on the living room floor of the home. The children were sleeping next to “large amounts of dog feces, which also was observed in the every room of the house,” according to the release. Some of the marijuana and drug paraphernalia also was found on the floor and on an end table in the living room, within reach of the three children, according to police. Police noted the entire house was “completely unsanitary based on the large amount of dog feces, strong urine odor, rotting food and trash strewn about,” the release states. A caseworker from DHS responded to the scene and initiated an investigation into the children’s welfare. The children were released into the custody of relatives. It was determined the two adults arrested were the parents of the 5-month-old, the other two children were relatives that do not normally stay at the home.
Corby retrial hopes rise
NEWS.com.au – Jan 22, 2006
Wiswantanu Ida Bagus said a police affidavit lodged in court by Queensland police might be the key to open a new trial for Corby in Denpasar District Court. On Friday, Wiswantanu had thought it impossible for Corby’s lawyers to have the case reopened. All the evidence pointed to her having smuggled the marijuana into Bali in a bodyboard bag. But yesterday, told of the contents of the affidavit, he said: “The affidavit could be used to reopen the case. ”
Corby’s half-brother, James Kisina, 18, faces eight charges arising from a home invasion and bashing at a known Brisbane suburban drug haunt this week. In Beenleigh Magistrates’ Court on Thursday, Kisina was remanded in custody to face counts including deprivation of liberty, assault occasioning bodily harm and possession and production of a dangerous drug. Kisina says he raided the home with two others to try to get information to help free his sister… ”
Veiled police hints and the wording of the affidavit that Kinsina is linked to drug exportation – and to his half-sister’s conviction and subsequent jailing for drug smuggling in Bali – have infuriated his lawyer. Solicitor Mark Howden, representing Kisina, demanded police “put up or shut up”. Kisina has not been charged in relation to drug exportation, but a police affidavit reads: “He is suspected of some involvement in the exportation of cannabis for which his sister has received a 20-year imprisonment sentence. ”
Mr Howden said yesterday: “I think it is irresponsible to puff up an affidavit by even mentioning his sister. “What has it got to do with his sister? If it has got something to do with his sister, then put up or shut up. ”
Mr Howden said some who read the affidavit could take the inference that Kisina – who was with Corby, 28, when she was caught with 4. 1kg of marijuana at Bali’s airport at Denpasar – was responsible for his sister’s plight.
Dallas Morning News | News for Dallas, Texas | Opinion: Points
Dallas Morning News – Dallas Morning News (subscription) – Jan 22, 2006
Thankfully, few modern lawyers wish to argue that federal anti-discrimination law exceeds congressional authority. And, perhaps as a consequence, until recently modern courts have by and large accepted the truism that almost any activity, anywhere, potentially affects interstate commerce and is subject to congressional regulation, provided that Congress makes a symbolic gesture at its potential interstate effects. As a result we have, for instance, federal criminal law covering small-scale garden-variety activities such as marijuana cultivation for personal use. In reaction to this nationalization of the law, "federalists" seek to limit congressional authority to legislate in areas that primarily concern individual states: California’s criminal code, for example, can deal with the prevalence of homegrown hash on the streets of San Francisco. And, with the help of the Rehnquist court, this idea has gained real urgency in the past several decades. A few liberals have advocated an embrace of federalism in the past, but, for the most part, federalism has a well-deserved bad reputation among liberals. "States’ rights" has been a central part of a conservative political agenda since Daniel Webster debated John C.
Labor unrest at Alitalia cancels 89 more flights
International Herald Tribune – Jan 22, 2006
Smoke from the fire prompted the police to close the road, which passes over the Westbourne Park Bus Garage, until about noon. The cause of the fire is being investigated, they said. (Reuters) AMSTERDAM: Pot growers' convention continues to expand Marijuana growers gathered in Europe's pot-smoking capital on Sunday for a trade show that has taken on the trappings of a major industry fair. More than 20,000 visitors from Europe and North America – 5,000 more than last year – were estimated to have visited the annual HighLife Hemp fair, held by cannabis growers. Displays at the festival, which moved from Utrecht to the capital Amsterdam this year, included promotional films, demonstrators in white lab coats and skimpily dressed models. (AFP) TOKYO: A rare snowfall in Tokyo left nearly 10,000 passengers stranded overnight at Narita airport after about 50 international flights were canceled, airport authorities said Sunday. (AFP) CHICAGO: A brief power failure delayed flights for about 35 minutes at Chicago airports on Saturday, the Federal Aviation Administration said… The cause of the fire is being investigated, they said. (Reuters) AMSTERDAM: Pot growers' convention continues to expand Marijuana growers gathered in Europe's pot-smoking capital on Sunday for a trade show that has taken on the trappings of a major industry fair. More than 20,000 visitors from Europe and North America – 5,000 more than last year – were estimated to have visited the annual HighLife Hemp fair, held by cannabis growers. Displays at the festival, which moved from Utrecht to the capital Amsterdam this year, included promotional films, demonstrators in white lab coats and skimpily dressed models. (AFP) TOKYO: A rare snowfall in Tokyo left nearly 10,000 passengers stranded overnight at Narita airport after about 50 international flights were canceled, airport authorities said Sunday. (AFP) CHICAGO: A brief power failure delayed flights for about 35 minutes at Chicago airports on Saturday, the Federal Aviation Administration said. When the power went out at the Chicago Terminal Radar Approach Control Center in Elgin, Illinois, the facility immediately went to backup power but Midway and O'Hare airports suspended flights as a precaution.