Palm Trees

California Drug Problems: The Week in Review

California has a reputation for hedonistic lifestyle, a place where the rich and famous feed the baser appetites. Story after story of celebrities in California succumbing to drug overdoses feeds the perception that California is a place where the rules were made to be broken.

Now California is in the national news because of the latest attempt to legalize marijuana. Many tout the idea as a great way to raise revenue for the cash-strapped state. If you legalize marijuana, you can tax it. Others object to the prospect of legal access to this popular drug. Most experts agree that if you legalize marijuana, more people will use it.

Some believe legalization is inevitable. Maybe if production were legal, it would slow down the problem of Mexican and South American drug cartels using remote areas of California’s national forests to grow marijuana. Cartels have also been known to use isolated farm structures to manufacture methamphetamines.

Also in the headlines recently is the sad case of Lindsey Lohan. Lohan was recently sentenced to 90 days in jail for violating her probation for a DUI offense. At the time of the original arrest, Lohan also allegedly was in possession of cocaine, but the arresting officer mistook it for a “crushed breath mint” and the evidence was tainted after he tossed it in the trash.

California’s governor ordered National Guard troops to the California-Mexico border to beef up security there. Although the problem of mass illegal immigration has been a popular political meme as of late, the biggest issue states along the border face is drug trafficking and the attendant violence. Drug violence in Mexico has exploded in recent years – reminiscent of the explosion of violence 20 years ago when Columbia decided to crack down on the drug cartels. Some of that violence has moved across the border. Border security is a critical element of any immigration policy, and many legislators refuse to deal with the immigration issue until they are assured that border security has improved.

In other California drug news, a former CHP officer was charged this week with murder-for-hire. He had already been arrested on drug and weapons charges in May. At that time, the CHP officer had only left his job as a California Highway Patrol officer a mere hour before his arrest. Charges included a DUI, transportation of meth, and possession of drugs while armed.

A sad story occurred at the end of June in Los Angeles. A 15-year-old girl died due to a drug overdose after attending a weekend rave at the L.A. Coliseum. It is believed that she had taken MDMA, also known as ecstasy. Another young person was also in critical condition after the rave.