enthalpy

Thursday, May 19, 2005


The complete idiocy of the War on Drugs at work
A 50-year-old man was found guilty Thursday of keeping large amounts of drugs along with assault rifles and a machine gun in a house that was within 1,000 feet of an elementary school.

The federal jury convicted Raul Javier Stevens, 50, of three separate counts: conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute more than 100 kilograms of marijuana; possession with intent to distribute 300 pounds of marijuana; and committing the drug trafficking offense within 1,000 feet of a school.
First off, how could "300 pounds" and "100 kilograms" be two separate counts? 100 Kilograms isn't the same as 300 pounds, so are there two separate charges based on different units? That doesn't make any sense.

Also, if anyone has that much weed, they are probably trying to distribute it, so the charge is probably gonna stick, but "within 1,000 feet of a school?" What the hell does that have to do with it? I know the laws are even more ridiculous when it comes to schools, but does the guy deserve a life sentence just because of the unfortunate geography of his apartment? Obviously, the DEA says yes.

Well, if that's not enough, he did have some guns and some coke. That's gotta be worth something, but when are we going to stop locking up people under life sentences for a plant that grows naturally on almost every continent on earth?



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