A New Study Finds That Reducing Pain Medication Is Associated With an Increased Risk of Overdose and Suicide
The study highlights the dangers that government-encouraged "tapering" poses to patients on long-term opioid therapy.
War on Drugs
Oregon Decriminalized All Drugs To Stop Overdoses. Will It Work?
Small-scale drug possession is now a $100 infraction that can be dismissed with a call to a drug abuse assessment hotline.
A Massachusetts Commission Recommends Long-Overdue Reforms to the 'Worst Civil Forfeiture Laws in the Country'
The commission says the legislature should raise the standard of proof and remove the financial incentive that encourages cops and prosecutors to pursue profit instead of public safety.
Texas Cops Realized They Raided the Wrong House. They Kept Searching Anyway.
Three of the officers were denied qualified immunity, but accountability is a long way off.
Massachusetts Prison System Sued Over Unreliable Drug Tests That Put Inmates in Solitary
Defense lawyers say they were accused of smuggling drugs to clients based on tests so unreliable they're akin to "witchcraft, phrenology or simply picking a number out of a hat."
State Governments Are Creating Their Own Drug Cartels
Much of what government does is tax people to try to fix problems that government caused.
How Drug Warriors Made the 'Opioid Epidemic' Deadlier
Restricting access to pain medication drove nonmedical users toward black-market substitutes.
What Happens to Discredited Drug Cops? They Get Rebranded as Gun Cops.
Ripped for use of excessive force, the Springfield, Massachusetts, Narcotics Bureau is becoming a Firearms Investigation Unit.
A Record Number of Drug-Related Deaths Illustrates the Lethal Consequences of Prohibition
The war on drugs is not just ineffective; it exacerbates the problems it is supposed to alleviate.
Drug War, Pandemic Likely Reasons for Spike in U.S. Overdose Deaths
Plus: Missouri and New Hampshire extend school choice, Facebook seeks recusal of FTC chair Lina Khan, and more...
Senate Democrats Embrace Marijuana Federalism. Will Republicans?
Senate Democratic Leader Charles Schumer is embracing a sensible approach to marijuana reform.
Chuck Schumer Says He Wants To Legalize Marijuana. His Bill Suggests Otherwise.
The Senate majority leader's racial rhetoric and overly prescriptive approach make an already iffy effort even more quixotic.
He Sold $20 Worth of Drugs. Prosecutors Want Him in Jail for Almost 10 Years—and More if He Refuses the Plea Deal.
That's illegal, says a new lawsuit.
Psychonautical Journalist Michael Pollan Is Finally Ready To End the War on Drugs
The evolution of Pollan's thinking reflects the confusion caused by arbitrary pharmacological distinctions.
The U.S. Has Strayed Far From Its Founding Ideals
Governments at the state, local, and federal levels can obstruct our pursuit of happiness and at times even jeopardize our safety.
Judge Frees 76-Year-Old Woman Sent Back to Federal Prison After Missing a Phone Call from Officials
Controversy highlights punishing responses to mundane mistakes during post-release monitoring of felons.
An Unbeatable Sprinter Is Defeated by an Irrational Prejudice
Sha’Carri Richardson’s suspension for marijuana use highlights an arbitrary distinction that makes less sense than ever before.
Losing Patience With Legislators, Mexico's Supreme Court Orders Permits Allowing Consumers To Grow and Possess Marijuana
Six years after the court ruled that pot prohibition was unconstitutional, the Mexican Congress is still dithering about how to license and regulate commercial suppliers.
If Sha'Carri Richardson Can Get High and Still Outrun Everybody, She Should Be Allowed To Do It
Banning the American sprinter from the Olympics for using marijuana is completely ridiculous.
The U.S. Quietly Departs Its Largest Military Base in Afghanistan
Plus: Sha'Carri Richardson might miss Olympics over positive pot test, 130 countries agree to broad strokes of a global minimum corporate tax, and more...
Although 44% of Americans Live in States That Have Legalized Pot, Federal Prohibition Is Not Likely to End Anytime Soon
The president supports the ban, and his fellow Democrats do not seem serious about attracting Republican support for repealing it.
Clarence Thomas Blasts the 'Contradictory and Unstable' Federal Marijuana Ban
Sixteen years after Gonzales v. Raich, Thomas is back with another opinion criticizing the federal government’s marijuana ban.
Charging Bit Players With Drug-Induced Homicide Is Unjust and Potentially Deadly
A new investigation of Pennsylvania prosecutions confirms that the defendants are often friends or low-level dealers.
Justice Thomas Decries "Contradictory and Unstable State" of Marijuana
In an opinion respecting the denial of certiorari, Justice Thomas suggests it may be time to reconsider Gonzales v. Raich
A Study Finds That Crash Injuries in 5 States Rose After They Legalized Marijuana Use but Not After They Allowed Marijuana Sales
Adding to the puzzle, another study from the same organization found "no increased crash risk" associated with cannabis consumption.
As More States Legalize Marijuana, the Need for Marijuana Federalism Grows
If states are to have different marijuana laws and policies, federal reform is necessary.
Biden Administration Endorses Legislation to End Crack Cocaine Sentencing Disparity
The EQUAL Act would finally end one of the worst legacies of the 1980s drug war and clean up one of the biggest stains on Joe Biden's record.
50 Years Into the War on Drugs, Drugs Are Winning
Plus: The federal government gets a jump-start on celebrating Juneteenth, the masks come off in California, and more...
Cops Punched a Man Hanging From a Window and Tased Him After He Fell. They Got Qualified Immunity.
But the appeals court wasn't having it.
U.S. Space Force Finds 30 Kilos of Cocaine While Looking for Sea Turtles
The drug bust blurs the line between military operations and civilian law enforcement.
Connecticut Legislature Passes Bill To Legalize Recreational Marijuana
Pending the governor's expected signature, Connecticut will become the 19th state—and the fifth this year—to legalize recreational weed.
D.C. Council's Ban on Flavored Tobacco Products Is a License for More Over-Policing of Minorities
Legislators cannot have it both ways.
California Wants To Throw $100 Million at Its Mismanaged Retail Marijuana Sector
Lawmakers want to pay cities to help cannabis businesses navigate the state’s oppressive bureaucracy.
New York Becomes the Latest State to Drop Its COVID Restrictions
Plus: Dispensaries give out free joints to the vaccinated, the Biden Administration cracks down on "extremists," and more...
Don't Be Surprised When Stupid Laws Are Maintained With Force
The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids railed against cops for enforcing the same kind of anti-vaping rule they help pass.
Cops Tased and Beat Teens While Enforcing a Local Vaping Ban
Dumb laws lead to police brutality.
The $2 Drug Test Keeping Inmates in Solitary
Reason tried out the field test kits used to test for drugs in prison. They were unreliable and confusing.
When Is a Civil Forfeiture Based on Drug Offenses Excessive? Always.
The question of proportionality assumes that punishment is appropriate for peaceful conduct that violates no one's rights.
Indiana Said the Government Should Be Able To Take Everything You Own if You Commit a Drug Crime. The State Supreme Court Wasn't Having It.
After eight years, Tyson Timbs finally gets to keep his Land Rover—once and for all.
The 9th Circuit Considers Whether the DEA's Classification of Marijuana Violates Federalism and the Separation of Powers
The puzzle of marijuana's Schedule I status invites a reconsideration of the agency's vast discretion to decide which substances should be prohibited.
America Loves Gay Marriage (and Weed)
A new poll shows even a majority of Republicans now support same-sex marriage.
The FBI Secretly Ran an Encrypted Messaging Service To Conduct the Same Old Drug War Stings
Plus: ACLU identity crisis, Texas bans vaccine rules, and more...
A New Kind of Cannabis License in Colorado
A rare opportunity to get a license plate that says "BONG" on it
She Was Sentenced to 21 Years in Prison for Handing Drugs to a Friend Who Overdosed. A Federal Court Wasn't Having It.
The case is a good reminder of the far-reaching effects of the war on drugs.
On Pot Legalization, Biden Offers Only Inaction
The new administration does not appear to be interested in addressing the conflict between state and federal marijuana laws.
Baton Rouge Cops Will Not Face Disciplinary Charges for Strip-Searching a Minor in Public
The announcement comes days after an exclusive report from Reason attracted national attention to the case.
Do Democrats Realize They Need Republican Support To Legalize Marijuana?
The MORE Act, which was reintroduced today, is full of contentious provisions that go far beyond repealing federal prohibition.
