<img src=" http://www.joplinglobeonline.com/images/zope/new.gif" border=0>Group calls for legalizing drugs

Local News

Discussion

June 15, 2009

Anonymous The Joplin Globe Mon Jun 15, 2009, 02:57 PM CDT

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — A national group of current and retired law enforcement and legal personnel wants to end the war on drugs by legalizing them.

Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, or LEAP, has put up a billboard in Oklahoma City that reads: “Drug Abuse is Bad. The Drug War is Worse.”

“We’re all calling for an end to drug prohibition. We want to end it just like we ended alcohol prohibition in 1933,” said Jack Cole, LEAP’s executive director and a retired undercover narcotics officer from New Jersey.

“The day after we ended that nasty law, Al Capone and all of his smuggling buddies were out of business.”

LEAP boasts roughly 13,000 members, among them 102 in Oklahoma; only 11 of the state’s members have law enforcement experience. Cole said the reason for this ad campaign is to open the public’s eyes to the true cost of the war on drugs.

Mark Woodward, spokesman for the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs, said legalizing and regulating drugs would cause more problems than it would solve.

“It’s frightening and reckless that a group of law enforcement officers would endorse something like that,” Woodward said.

“Look at what happened when we legalized alcohol and prescription drugs. Now they’re the two most abused substances globally.”

According to the Office of National Drug Control Policy, President Barack Obama called for $14.1 billion to support the war on drugs for the 2009 fiscal year.

———

Information from: The Oklahoman, http://www.newsok.com

Text Only

Local News

Board places $62 million bond issue on April ballot
In a special session Monday morning, the Joplin Board of Education unanimously approved for the ballot what likely is the largest bond issue proposal in the history of the school district.

February 6, 2012 1 Photo
Turnout could be low for ‘straw poll’ primary
Local election officials don’t know what to expect in terms of voter turnout for today’s presidential preference primary, several said Monday.

February 6, 2012
Council denies Highview rezoning
Current residents of Highview Avenue, south of 20th Street, won a battle Monday night when the Joplin City Council denied commercial zoning for residential lots on the east side of the street. The war may not be over, though.

February 6, 2012
Two men plead guilty in sex-offense cases
The Jasper County prosecutor’s office obtained convictions Monday in two sex-offense cases through offers for the defendants to enter pleas on reduced charges.

February 6, 2012
Judge sends identity thief to prison
The husband of a woman who was sent to prison last year for putting an imaginary baby up for sale on Craigslist was assessed a prison term himself Monday for trafficking in stolen identities.

February 6, 2012
Carl Junction panel studying dog tethering, barking issues
The Carl Junction Codes and Nuisance Review Committee will meet today to consider possible ordinances for dog retention after a complaint by a resident at the most recent City Council meeting.

February 6, 2012
PSU president gives faculty preview of legislative report
At a forum Monday afternoon on budget-related and legislative issues, Pittsburg State University President Steve Scott gave about 100 faculty and staff members a preview of today’s testimony before the House Education Budget Committee.

February 6, 2012
No objections voiced to tribe’s CID proposal
A couple of questions but no objections were voiced Monday at a public hearing regarding a proposed community improvement district in northwest Newton County.

February 6, 2012
Mike Pound: Grown men soon to be playing baseball, so all is well
Now that the Super Bowl is over (It is over, isn’t it?), I’ve set my sights on Feb. 18. That is the day, according to what I’ve read, when major league baseball pitchers and catchers are due to start reporting for spring training. When spring training is under way, I don’t care what the weather is like around here.

February 6, 2012
SW Mo. man charged with abusing foster kids
A southwest Missouri man has been charged with sexually abusing two of his foster children.

February 6, 2012
More Local News Headlines

Board places $62 million bond issue on April ballot

Local News

Search Results

Discussion

<img src=" http://www.joplinglobeonline.com/images/zope/new.gif" border=0>Group calls for legalizing drugs

Six judges in a county in Kansas are using iPads to sign off on search warrants so law enforcement can more quickly draw blood from suspected drunken drivers. Do you think more counties should use this technology?

Site Map

Contact Us