Narcotics

May 28, 2008 -- STOCKTON -- California Department of Justice special agents, in partnership with the Stockton Police Department, today arrested members of the violent Norteno street gang, which terrorized Stockton with drive-by shootings and crystal methamphetamine trafficking at the direction of the Nuestra Familia prison mafia.    » read more »

21 May 2008 -- In Mexico, President Felipe Calderon continues his fight against powerful drug cartels as the death count mounts. More than 1,300 people have died this year in Mexico in violence connected to the illicit drug trade. In recent weeks some high-ranking police officials have been targets of drug gangs, leading some analysts to wonder whether the Mexican government or the criminal gangs will win the fight.

Mexican police: Photo by Ese Oso/Chris (CC)    » read more »

May 14, 2008 -- OROVILLE -- California Attorney General Edmund G. Brown Jr. today announced that special agents in the California Department of Justice Bureau of Gambling Control and Butte County Inter-Agency Task Force have shut down a methamphetamine laboratory operating from motor homes parked at Feather Falls Casino.

“State investigators encountered a mobile methamphetamine laboratory operating right in the middle of the casino parking lot,” Attorney General Brown said. “The suspects disguised their mobile meth operation by hiding amongst legitimate visitors who were parking in the casino’s parking lot.”    » read more »

Multi-agency crackdown “Operation Slim Chance” leads to indictment of 24

ALBANY, N.Y. (May 8, 2008) - New York Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo today announced the indictment of 24 New Yorkers accused of taking part in a highly organized narcotics distribution organization operating in the Capitol District and supplied from Long Island.

In the indictment unsealed in Schenectady County Court yesterday, a Grand Jury charged 24 people with possession and/or sale of narcotics and conspiracy to sell narcotics. The majority of arrests stemming from the Indictment occurred this morning throughout the Capitol Region. The indictment is the result of a multi-agency investigation known as “Operation Slim Chance,” led by the Attorney General’s Organized Crime Task Force (OCTF).    » read more »

Attorney General Says ‘Blow' Energy Drink Glorifying Drug Culture

May 2, 2008 -- Chicago – Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan is demanding that a Las Vegas company discontinue its cocaine-themed marketing and sale of an energy drink mix that glorifies drug culture and has raised serious health concerns due to its high caffeine content.

Blow drink mix: Photo courtesy Illinois Attorney General's office

In a letter sent earlier this week to the President of Kingpin Concepts, Inc., Attorney General Madigan demanded that the company immediately cease all marketing and sales of the energy drink called Blow in the state of Illinois.    » read more »

Senator Says Progress Has Been Made, More Needs To Be Done To Stamp Out Meth, Other Drug Use

April 22, 2008 -- (Washington, D.C.) – Montana’s senior U.S. Senator Max Baucus and others today urged the Senate Appropriations Committee to provide $235 million for the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) Program, which helps drug tasks forces coordinate efforts to curb drug trafficking.

Anti-methamphetamine graffiti on a house near Billings, Montana: Photo by Eric Chan (CC)    » read more »

April 17, 2008 -- TALLAHASSEE – Florida Lt. Governor Jeff Kottkamp today announced the steady decline in youth drug use since 2000, as he rolled out the results of the 2007 Florida Youth Substance Abuse Survey. The Florida Office of Drug Control Policy, state agencies, law enforcement and substance abuse prevention coalitions have partnered to reduce substance abuse across the state.

“Florida’s children are a treasure, one that we must protect,” said Lt. Governor Kottkamp. “Drug use threatens the safety and security of our children. The survey is vital to understanding how to prevent drug use.”

According to the survey, Florida’s youth drug use is down in 20 out of 21 areas measured. Among the findings:    » read more »

Flooding brain with "pleasure chemical" receptors works on cocaine, as on alcohol

April 16, 2008 -- UPTON, NY - Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory have shown that increasing the brain level of receptors for dopamine, a pleasure-related chemical, can reduce use of cocaine by 75 percent in rats trained to self-administer it.

Peter Thanos: Photo courtesy Brookhaven Labs    » read more »

April 7, 2008 -- ALLENTOWN - Fifteen suspected drug dealers and users were charged today by the Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office with passing fraudulent prescriptions, illegally distributing Percocet and exchanging heroin for prescription drugs.

Pennsylvania prescription drug ring

Attorney General Tom Corbett said the investigation, known as "Operation Bad Scripts," began in January 2008 and focused on the illegal prescription distribution ring of Melinda Miller, 26, 318 Johnsonville Road, Bangor, Northampton County.

Opr Bad Scripts chartEvidence and testimony regarding the case was presented to a statewide investigating grand jury, which recommended the criminal charges being filed today.    » read more »

March 31, 2008 -- HELENA - Montana Attorney General Mike McGrath released a report Monday that demonstrates the state continues to make progress against the use of methamphetamine.

Methamphetamine in Montana: A Follow-Up Report on Trends and Progress (PDF) was done in conjunction with the Montana Meth Project. Trends identified in the report are based on data that includes drug task force incident reports, law enforcement statistics, crime lab reports, hospital discharge and admission information, survey results and interviews with participating agencies. McGrath's office released a similar report in early 2007.

McGrath said statistics from the Youth Risk Behavior Survey conducted by the Office of Public Instruction were especially encouraging.    » read more »

March 19, 2008 -- HARRISBURG - Pennsylvania Attorney General narcotics agents today arrested three men involved in a $1.6 million cocaine distributing operation in Harrisburg. One of the accused is a Pennsylvania Department of Revenue employee.

Attorney General Tom Corbett said that this investigation, known as "Operation High Stakes," put an end to John Hollins' alleged distribution scheme, which had been operating since 1987.

Pennsylvania Attorney General announces Operation High Stakes: 3 arrested in $1.6 million cocaine distributing operation bust in Harrisburg.    » read more »

Eight arrested, methamphetamine, marijuana, cocaine, hash, guns, U.S. currency seized

March 13, 2008 -- SANTA ROSA -- California Attorney General Edmund G. Brown Jr. today announced that California Department of Justice agents yesterday arrested eight suspects in connection with a Santa Rosa drug distribution ring and methamphetamine laboratory in the town of Winton.    » read more »

Ruthless Insurgency, Fragile Government Institutions, Massive Illegal Drug Economy

Head of Peacekeeping Says United Nations Mission Does Not Need Additional Powers, but, in Face of Evolving Situation, Mandate Must Be Sharpened    » read more »

March 1, 2008 -- DIRECTOR WALTERS: Welcome to everybody on the call. I will just give a brief summary, and then I'll be happy to take your questions on any of the topics we touch on, or others related to the drug control strategy.    » read more »

Biden Legislation to Completely Eliminate the Unjust 100-to-1 Crack/Powder Sentencing Structure and Replace with 1-to-1 System

February 12, 2008 -- Washington, DC – At a hearing addressing the federal cocaine sentencing laws today, Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Drugs Joseph R. Biden, Jr. (D-DE) called for an end to the current crack/powder cocaine sentencing disparity. Currently, it takes 100 times more powder cocaine than crack to trigger the five- and ten-year mandatory minimum sentences under federal law.    » read more »