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New Orleans D.A. Fights Murder by Sending Pot Smokers to Prison
New Orleans City Business reports that Orleans Parish District Attorney Keva Landrum-Johnson has instituted a new policy of charging minor marijuana offenders with felonies if they have prior convictions. Under state law, possessing a small amount of marijuana is a misdemeanor that can result in a jail sentence of up to six months but is typically punished by a small fine. Subsequent offenses can be treated as felonies, punishable by up to five years in prison for a second offense and up to 20 years for a third offense. But Landrum-Johnson's predecessors routinely exercised their discretion to treat such offenses as misdemeanors. The new D.A. has reversed that policy so she can rack up felony prosecutions and demonstrate her tough-on-crime credentials:
Shortly after Keva Landrum-Johnson took over as district attorney...hundreds of new felony cases flooded the public defenders office, overwhelming the 29 defense attorneys.
After New Orleans regained its title as the nation's murder capital, the public demanded its city leaders crack down on violent crime. By filing hundreds of new felony cases each month, it appeared as if the new DA heeded their call.
Unfortunately, this wasn't the case, said Steve Singer, chief of trials for the Orleans Public Defenders Office.
The flood of new felony charges didn't target murderers, rapists or armed robbers— they targeted small-time marijuana users, sometimes caught with less than a gram of pot, and threatened them with lengthy prison sentences.
The resulting impact has clogged the courts with non-violent, petty offenses, drained the resources of the criminal justice system and damaged low-income African-American communities, Singer said.
Nearly all of the people facing felony charges for smoking pot are black and poor, because, as everyone knows, virtually no middle-class white people smoke pot. One defendant cited by the paper is a man who was "arrested once before as a teenager 20 years ago" and since then "has married, raised a family and kept out of trouble." Now he may have to spend the money he saved for his son's college tuition on legal expenses. Take that, crime!
In May I marveled at New York City's little-noticed crackdown on pot smokers, which has a similar racial skew, unjustly converts citable offenses to misdemeanors, but looks enlightened compared to Landrum-Johnson's crusade.
[via Paul Armentano at NORML]
Elemenope|7.24.08 @ 6:06PM|#
What. A. Bitch.
It's enough to make this guy feel a misogynistic twinge.
That aside: Sullum, you running for Balko's spot, or something?
|7.24.08 @ 6:10PM|#
Ms Landrum-Johnson needs to be removed from power!
Her actions and her archaic, myopic attitude towards marijuana
users are exactly what's making it impossible to impose minimum age
restrictions on the sale of marijuana.
She knows as well as the police and the DEA that the prohibition
can't get marijuana out of society. It just can't do it. Instead it
inflates the price, increasing the profits of those supplying the
market and sucking into the market every gang and criminal
organization looking to make easy money.
Legalizing marijuana will send the right message to our children,
it'll tell them we aren't going to lie to them anymore, it'll tell
them we aren't going to alienate them from society simply due to
their choice of recreational drug, and it'll tell them that
discrimination in any form is unacceptable.
We must force people like Ms Landrum-Johnson out of power and
demand our government strike down its discriminatory, costly, and
morally repugnant marijuana prohibition! Every legislator who votes
to retain the prohibition votes to keep marijuana in the hands of
minors. Oust them all. Legalize Marijuana!!
Travis|7.24.08 @ 6:22PM|#
Thank God someone cracked down on all those dope-fiends. People can live with a little rape & robbery in their lives, but marijuana smokers are the scum of the earth.
|7.24.08 @ 6:26PM|#
Radley, can you go a day without getting me angry?
Wait, this was Jacob, not Radley? Well, Radley already got me upset
with his innocence project post earlier today.
Seriously, this is disgraceful. All I hear from my right-wing
compatriots is the line from the DOJ and the DEA -- that people
being in prison for marijuana possession is a "myth", and that the
only people who get these long sentences are big-time
traffickers.
And, sadly, the public will support it -- including some of whom
smoke pot on a regular basis (like I know some of my right-wing
friends do).
(my reaction to stuff like this is also the reason why my wife
jokes to me that when our (future) kid grows up he's likely going
to attempt to violently overthrow the US government)
lunchstealer|7.24.08 @ 6:27PM|#
When are we going to legalize robbery, rape, assault, and murder, so we can stop diverting valuable resources from solving the serious problem of marijuana possession?
squarooticus|7.24.08 @ 6:29PM|#
We must force people like Ms Landrum-Johnson out of power and demand our government strike down its discriminatory, costly, and morally repugnant marijuana prohibition!
Eureka! What an idea! Why didn't anyone think of this
before?!
Yeah, go ahead and get started on that letter writing campaign
right away.
|7.24.08 @ 6:30PM|#
Per the DEA's own website:
*
There is a myth in this country that U.S. prisons are filled with
drug users. This assertion is simply not true. Actually, only 5
percent of inmates in federal prison on drug charges are
incarcerated for drug possession. In our state prisons, it's
somewhat higher-about 27% of drug offenders. In New York, which has
received criticism from some because of its tough Rockefeller drug
laws, it is estimated that 97% of drug felons sentenced to prison
were charged with sale or intent to sell, not simply possession. In
fact, first time drug offenders, even sellers, typically do not go
to prison.
*
Most cases of simple drug possession are simply not prosecuted,
unless people have been arrested repeatedly for using drugs. In
1999, for example, only 2.5 percent of the federal cases argued in
District Courts involved simple drug possession. Even the small
number of possession charges is likely to give an inflated
impression of the numbers. It is likely that a significant
percentage of those in prison on possession charges were people who
were originally arrested for trafficking or another more serious
drug crime but plea-bargained down to a simple possession
charge.
*
The Michigan Department of Corrections just finished a study of
their inmate population. They discovered that out of 47,000
inmates, only 15 people were incarcerated on first-time drug
possession charges. (500 are incarcerated on drug possession
charges, but 485 are there on multiple charges or pled down.)
*
In Wisconsin the numbers are even lower, with only 10 persons
incarcerated on drug possession charges. (769 are incarcerated on
drug possession charges, but 512 of those entered prison through
some type of revocation, leaving 247 entering prison on a "new
sentence." Eliminating those who had also been sentenced on
trafficking and/or non-drug related charges; the total of new drug
possession sentences came to 10.)
Policy Shift to Treatment
*
There has been a shift in the U.S. criminal justice system to
provide treatment for non-violent drug users with addiction
problems, rather than incarceration. The criminal justice system
actually serves as the largest referral source for drug treatment
programs.
*
Any successful treatment program must also require accountability
from its participants. Drug treatment courts are a good example of
combining treatment with such accountability. These courts are
given a special responsibility to handle cases involving
drug-addicted offenders through an extensive supervision and
treatment program. Drug treatment court programs use the varied
experience and skills of a wide variety of law enforcement and
treatment professionals: judges, prosecutors, defense counsels,
substance abuse treatment specialists, probation officers, law
enforcement and correctional personnel, educational and vocational
experts, community leaders and others - all focused on one goal: to
help cure addicts of their addiction, and to keep them cured.
*
Drug treatment courts are working. Researchers estimate that more
than 50 percent of defendants convicted of drug possession will
return to criminal behavior within two to three years. Those who
graduate from drug treatment courts have far lower rates of
recidivism, ranging from 2 to 20 percent.
*
What makes drug treatment courts so different? Graduates are held
accountable to the program. Unlike purely voluntary treatment
programs, the addict-who has a physical need for drugs- can't
simply quit treatment whenever he or she feels like it.
*
Many state governments are also taking the opportunity to divert
non-violent drug offenders from prison in the hopes of offering
treatment and rehabilitation outside the penal facility. In New
York, prosecutors currently divert over 7,000 convicted drug felons
from prison each year. Many enter treatment programs.
*
States throughout the Midwest are also establishing programs to
divert drug offenders from prison and aid in their recovery. In
Indiana, 64 of the 92 counties offer community corrections programs
to rehabilitate and keep first time non-violent offenders,
including nonviolent drug offenders, out of prison. Nonviolent drug
offenders participating in the community corrections program are
required to attend a treatment program as part of their
rehabilitation.
*
In July of 2002, the Ohio Judicial Conference conducted a survey of
a select group of judges. The results from the survey demonstrated
that judges "offer treatment to virtually 100 percent of first-time
drug offenders and over 95 percent of second-time drug offenders."
According to the survey, these percentages are accurate throughout
the state, no matter the jurisdiction or county size. The Ohio
Judicial Conference went a step further, reviewing pre-sentence
investigations and records, which demonstrated that "99 percent of
offenders sentenced to prison had one or more prior felony
convictions or multiple charges."
*
The assertion that U.S. prisons are filled with drug users is
simply untrue. As this evidence shows, more and more minor drug
offenders are referred to treatment centers in an effort to reduce
the possibility of recidivism and help drug users get help for
their substance abuse problems. The drug treatment court program
and several other programs set up throughout the United States have
been reducing the number of minor drug offenses that actually end
up in the penal system. The reality is that you have to work pretty
darn hard to end up in jail on drug possession charges.
|7.24.08 @ 6:32PM|#
A city with a murder problem needs all the calming, soothing, peace-promoting pot it can get. If this District Attorney had a half a brain--even a tenth of a brain--she would be looking for land in the city to start farming cannabis.
|7.24.08 @ 6:33PM|#
Y'all are gonna love this. I just googled the evil bitch. First
hit, from Nola.com
|7.24.08 @ 6:48PM|#
Andrew-
I hope your wife isn't joking. I hope she is sending you a messge
that it is time to take action.
|7.24.08 @ 7:04PM|#
Andrew-
I hope your wife isn't joking. I hope she is sending you a messge that it is time to take action.
I take action to the extent I can. I've written to the editor of
the newspaper (with no success in getting printed, save for one
blog article by one of their columnists). I'm constantly writing
our congrescritters. I do what I can, but it's a losing battle.
|7.24.08 @ 7:15PM|#
Nearly all of the people facing felony charges for smoking
pot are black and poor, because, as everyone knows, virtually no
middle-class white people smoke pot.
I got into a War on Drugs conversation with the folks over at
policelink.com a month or three ago about the war on
drugs minorities. I mentioned the
overwhelming disparate impact on the poor and minorites and even
offered that it was the low hanging fruit effect not institutional
racism.
The response was, "No it doesn't. I busted a white guy the other
day. It doesn't harm minoriteis the hardest".
The drug warrior mindset is stunningly unamenable to reason.
Travis|7.24.08 @ 7:18PM|#
"She's a prosecutor's prosecutor," said Derwyn Bunton, a lawyer
with the Juvenile Justice Project of Louisiana. "When she felt like
she had you, there was no turning back."
That pretty much says it all.
|7.24.08 @ 7:25PM|#
@stopthesham: our politicos, like most of the americans they represent, are generally extremely ignorant of general economic principles. "prohibition can't get marijuana out of society. It just can't do it. Instead it inflates the price, increasing the profits of those supplying the market and sucking into the market every gang and criminal organization looking to make easy money."-is probably exactly what she doesnt know
|7.24.08 @ 8:16PM|#
Everybody knows that marijuana -- or "pot", as you young people
call it -- is THE gateway drug to homicide.
There was a documentary called "Reefer Madness"...
|7.24.08 @ 9:16PM|#
Whether pot is a gateway to worse drugs or even violent crime and murder is moot. What is clear is that pot prohibition (and prohibition in general) is government's and society's gateway drug to totalitarianism. I say zero-tolerance for prohibition is the only way!
|7.24.08 @ 9:32PM|#
What the??
In December, just after taking office, she spent quite a bit of
time at the Conference on Drug Policy Reform, held in New orleans,
saying the right things. Now this?
|7.24.08 @ 9:40PM|#
In December, just after taking office, she spent quite a bit
of time at the Conference on Drug Policy Reform, held in New
orleans, saying the right things. Now this?
She was just lying for Jesus. Marijuana prohibition is based on
religion not science or need. These people will say anything to get
elected but will stay true to their crusade against temptation.
Democrat Shill|7.24.08 @ 9:49PM|#
Who knew they elected rightwing republicans DA in Orleans Parish? She must really hate Black people.
|7.24.08 @ 10:54PM|#
juanita | July 24, 2008, 9:35pm | #
Don't do the crime if you cant do the time.
This isn't a normal crime. This is a victimless crime which is only
even a crime because Nixon declared it to be so.
Criminalizing marijuana users while allowing alcohol and tobacco
users to freely consume their recreational drug of choice is
blatant discrimination, and is as repugnant as denying women the
vote or refusing marriage between same-sex couples.
The federal marijuana prohibition is bad law, it should not be on
the books and it should not be enforced. The only reason it still
exists is because it's protected by the DEA and ONDCP. In fact it's
written into the Reauthorization Act that the Director of the ONDCP
must "..take such actions as necessary to oppose any attempt to
legalize the use of" marijuana. This law is a repugnant scourge on
society which only serves to alienate families, discriminate
against otherwise innocent people, and provide job security to law
enforcement officers, DEA and the criminal justice system.
Fuckin\' Fixed|7.24.08 @ 11:02PM|#
This is a victimless crime which is only even a crime
because Nixon Franklin Delano
Roosevelt declared it to be so.
juanita|7.24.08 @ 11:07PM|#
Thinking Nixon made marijuana illegal is proof positive of the brain-damaging effects of cannabis use.
juanita|7.24.08 @ 11:09PM|#
If alchohol and tobacco are worse than marijuana then they should be illegal as well.
Elemenope|7.24.08 @ 11:28PM|#
Caffeine has killed people, Juanita.
What do you think about its legality?
Tylenol, too. Shit, people have died from *salt* poisoning.
Should they be made illegal?
|7.25.08 @ 4:16AM|#
Elemenope, don't you realize that salt is a gateway seasoning to other, stronger flavors? It starts out with salt, but before you know it, your cabinet contains pepper, oregano, nutmeg, cilantro, and even *gasp* cumin.
Elemenope|7.25.08 @ 7:15AM|#
Elemenope, don't you realize that salt is a gateway
seasoning to other, stronger flavors? It starts out with salt, but
before you know it, your cabinet contains pepper, oregano, nutmeg,
cilantro, and even *gasp* cumin.
You're right. It's like opening Pandora's Box! We must move swiftly
to crush these sensates and their cherished "flavors" before we are
all infected with lust for spiced food!
Serr8d|7.25.08 @ 8:34AM|#
This new policy isn't so much about busting first-time or casual
pot smokers, but about using a tool to slap down real criminals.
Unfortunately, thieves, murderers, and other lovelies you wouldn't
much have in your home alone with your schnauzer tend to smoke a
lot of dope. I hate thieves; casual pot smokers, not so much.
Oh, and you'll never see marijuana legalized. Because our
government(s) (as taxing authorities) could never figure out a way
to tax marijuana that, if legalized, one could grow in one's
windowsill.
Get you a nice (taxed) Bud, instead.
PC|7.25.08 @ 9:21AM|#
They use guns and threat of force with little to no remorse for their actions. We act "civilized". Is being "civilized" or having "decency" just virtuous words for being an ignorant martyr?
|7.25.08 @ 9:44AM|#
juanita | July 24, 2008, 11:07pm | #
Thinking Nixon made marijuana illegal is proof positive of the
brain-damaging effects of cannabis use.
That's not the REAL Juanita. My internet love writes much
better than that.
|7.25.08 @ 10:12AM|#
Hey Juanita, Nixon established the DEA. The criminalization of
drugs began with the so-called "progressive liberals" Woodrow
Wilson and FDR. Wilson made opiates and cocaine illegal and FDR
made marijuana illegal.
The left-wing drug warriors want to spend more taxpayer dollars on
more "social programs" to combat the demand side of equation. While
the right wants to combat the supply.
Both are costing us dearly and are a grave assault on our
liberties.
|7.25.08 @ 10:18AM|#
The "gateway" drug maybe the stupidest of all of the stupid
arguments for prohibition of marijuana. What's the likelihood of
someone trying heroin or coke before trying marijuana? What's the
likelihood of even knowing where to get hard drugs without even a
little pot use?
Owning a TV is gateway consumer electronics to buying a TiVo. True,
but massively irrelevant.
|7.25.08 @ 10:19AM|#
Actually, only 5 percent of inmates in federal prison on
drug charges are incarcerated for drug possession. In our state
prisons, it's somewhat higher-about 27% of drug
offenders.
Oh, well, that's alright then. Only 5% of federal inmates and 27%
of state inmates are in on possession charges. Nothing to see here;
just move along before I put a jackboot up your ass.
|7.25.08 @ 11:01AM|#
Oh, and you'll never see marijuana legalized. Because our
government(s) (as taxing authorities) could never figure out a way
to tax marijuana that, if legalized, one could grow in one's
windowsill.
I'm sure some people would grow their own, but really, you think a
casual smoker is going to want to waste their time taking care of a
marijuana plant when they could just buy something already made for
them? I doubt it, but I don't know what kind of commitment growing
a marijuana plant takes.
Elemenope|7.25.08 @ 11:23AM|#
I'm sure some people would grow their own, but really, you
think a casual smoker is going to want to waste their time taking
care of a marijuana plant when they could just buy something
already made for them? I doubt it, but I don't know what kind of
commitment growing a marijuana plant takes.
From what I hear...
It's not hard, but it is a pain in the ass. That is to say, the
tasks involved are simple enough for a monkey, but they take a lot
of effort to do right.
Also, with legalization, I'm sure companies would like to get in on
the hybridization game, come up with all sorts of mixtures and
whatnot to market, and can regulate and guarantee quality (THC%,
etc.).
The idea that the government wouldn't know how to tax such a thing
is ridiculous beyond belief.
|7.25.08 @ 11:39AM|#
It's not that hard to grow. Most of the pain in the ass part is because it is illegal. Once you know how to sex the plants properly, you are fairly good to go. (Umm, that's like, umm what I've been told...)
|7.25.08 @ 12:49PM|#
It's not hard to grow and home brew isn't hard to make, but most
people prefer to go to a bar and buy their beer rather than brew
their own.
The same will be true when marijuana is legalized, some people will
enjoy growing their own, most will prefer the ambiance of their
local coffeeshop (or whatever we decide to call them).
It'll be the simplest thing for the government to tax, no different
from the way alcohol and tobacco are taxed today. One thing that's
not talked about is when marijuana is legalized it'll bring in a
ton of tourists into the country in the same way the coffeeshops
bring tourists into the Netherlands. This'll be good for the
economy and man we could all do with a bit of that right now!
Sambo|7.25.08 @ 1:56PM|#
"She must really hate Black people."
She too, is black. It's called internalized racism.
Scant|7.25.08 @ 1:57PM|#
"is as repugnant as denying women the vote or refusing marriage
between same-sex couples."
Typical hophead, pro women's sufferage AND gay marriage. It really
does fuck up the brain.
LarryA|7.25.08 @ 2:59PM|#
Actually, only 5 percent of inmates in federal prison on
drug charges are incarcerated for drug possession.
Because under drug war laws anyone in possession of more than a
trivial amount of MJ is prosecuted as a "dealer," even though they
don't sell or give away any of it.
Oh, and you'll never see marijuana legalized. Because our
government(s) (as taxing authorities) could never figure out a way
to tax marijuana that, if legalized, one could grow in one's
windowsill.
Tobacco isn't that hard to grow either.
LarryA|7.25.08 @ 3:03PM|#
Oh, and you'll never see marijuana legalized. Because our
government(s) (as taxing authorities) could never figure out a way
to tax marijuana that, if legalized, one could grow in one's
windowsill.
Also, people purchase commercially and pay sales tax on bottled
water they could draw from their kitchen sink.
Phil Morris|7.25.08 @ 3:55PM|#
Tobacco isn't that hard to grow either.
Yes it is. It is much easier to grow excellent marijuana than bad
tobacco.
Serr8d|7.25.08 @ 9:37PM|#
From Elemenope...
The idea that the government wouldn't know how to tax such a thing is ridiculous beyond belief.
Of course you would have some people who would pay
extra for something that grows like a weed (hey...concept!),
just like you have effete fobs who pay for Starbuck's coffee when
Waffle House (or our own homebrewed stuff) is as good or
better.
I live in Tennessee, where the largest cash crop is marijuana.
Bigger than soybeans or tobacco or corn or cotton or whatever you
want to grow. Marijuana grows anywhere and everywhere. We have to
have regular chopper overflights by six or more agencies to try to
get some of it; but there is no way get it all. Do you think these
growers are going to submit to paying taxes?
Money is always the bottom line for the government. Be sure to
figure in that cash given to congressperps by liquor lobbyists who
want to keep a 'monopoly' on making people happy. For example, our
ex-governor, Ned Ray McWherter, owns a brewery. Guess who cries the
loudest and lobbies the hardest against the possibility that
marijuana might become a 'legal' competitor?
Always follow the money. Always.
|7.26.08 @ 8:44PM|#
This is New Orleans, Ray Nagin's "chocolate city". What middle-class white people?
|7.30.08 @ 1:35PM|#
Maybe if more people smoked pot, there would be less violent crimes. Its pretty hard to get angry with someone after smoking a joint.
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