Category: Crime, Corrections, Law Enforcement
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Altria rumored to be in talks to buy Canadian cannabis company Cronos Group
High in Henrico. Henrico County based Altria, makers of Marlboro cigarettes among other products, is rumored to be interested in buying Canadian cannabis company Cronos Group. Altria is refusing comment while Cronos said it “confirmed that it is engaged in discussions concerning a potential investment by Altria Group … in Cronos Group.” Cronos went on…
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Marijuana arrests and racism in Virginia (especially Arlington County)
Reefer madness. The upcoming debate in the Virginia General Assembly over decriminalizing possession of small amounts of marijuana may have racial overtones. VCU Capital News Service studied the data for marijuana arrests in Virginia from 2010 through 2016. African Americans were 3.2 times more likely to be arrested for marijuana crimes than whites. At the…
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A Crime-Fighting Experiment at Gilpin Court
The Attorney General’s office is funding an interesting social experiment. On the theory that fighting crime requires addressing root causes over and above actually, uh, fighting crime, the AG is providing $1 million to fund programs designed to improve health, education and economic outcomes and strengthen neighborhood ties at the City of Richmond’s largest housing…
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Va 2019 General Assembly session – prefiled House of Delegates bills
Much ado about nothing. As of this morning there were 83 prefiled bills for the House of Delegates and 225 prefiled bills for the State Senate. With a few exceptions the House prefiles are pretty “ho hum”. I will examine the Senate prefiles in a subsequent column. One from column A and two from column…
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Virginia to Consider New Marijuana Decriminalization bill in 2019 General Assembly Session
If at first you don’t succeed … State Sen. Adam Ebbin (D-30) has pre-filed a 2019 bill to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana in Virginia. The matter will be taken up in the General Assembly session in early 2019. Last year Ebbin patroned a similar bill that was defeated 9-6 in the Senate…
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Caravans, Asylum and MS-13
It’s been frustrating the past couple of days. Attending a family funeral in Wilksboro, N.C., I’ve been unable to respond to the tremendous ruckus created by Steve Haner’s past three columns. Great job, Steve. Keep up the rabble rousing! I’m back now, though, and I’ve been catching up on my reading. And the story the…
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Virginia’s 2018 Marijuana Decriminalization Bill: What Happened and What’s Next?
Up in smoke. During the 2018 General Assembly session a bill to decriminalize marijuana was killed in committee. The Senate Courts of Justice Committee voted along party lines on that bill, SB 111. All nine Republican Senators on the Committee voted to keep marijuana possession (in any amount) a criminal act in Virginia while all…
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The case for legalizing recreational marijuana use in Virginia
Caveat. While I have no moral objection to the possession of marijuana I do not espouse breaking the laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia. I believe the marijuana laws in Virginia should be changed but, until they are changed, I encourage everybody to obey the laws as they are presently written. Strive for five. I…
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Getting Virginians their Lives Back One License at a Time
L.C. lived with a relative in Amelia County, raising her daughter and driving to her job at a Richmond-area hospital. She frequently loaned her car to the family member. Unbeknownst to her, the relative racked up frequent toll violations. The charges quickly added up — $0.75 per toll, plus $25 administrative fees for not paying…
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Bacon Bits: As Virginia Slowly Unravels
Yes, it’s OK to panic. Norfolk Southern Corp., the beneficiary of local incentives a year or two ago when it moved jobs from Roanoke to Norfolk, now is said to be close to announcing the relocation of its headquarters to Atlanta. “A deal has already been struck,” Norfolk Mayor Kenny Alexander told the Virginian-Pilot. It appears that…
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Legalized Medical and Recreational Marijuana Use Appear to Hurt Alcohol Sales
High times. In a recent Bacon’s Rebellion column … Will Virginia Legalize Recreational Marijuana Use … I noted that well over 20% of Americans now live in states that have legalized the recreational use of marijuana. In the column I wondered whether our General Assembly’s reluctance to address the question in a meaningful way might…
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Hold On… Marijuana Arrests Going Up?
There is more and more talk in Virginia about decriminalizing marijuana, yet marijuana arrests have increased in the past year, notes the Virginia Mercury. What’s going on? The Mercury quotes Dave Albo, a former state delegate and Northern Virginia lawyer Virginia who frequently represents clients on marijuana-possession charges: “My unscientific explanation for this dramatic increase is people…
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ACLU: The System, Not Female Prisoners, Guilty
You find what you look for. When you look for statistical evidence of discrimination and injustice, you will find it. In a corrections system in which 85% of prisoners are male, for example, the ACLU of Virginia finds evidence of “widespread and discriminatory suffering” imposed upon women. You see, while women constitute only 15% of…
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Crack, Guns and Murder Rates
The 1980s crack epidemic created a vicious spike in homicides in major cities across the United States. As the epidemic faded, so did the street killings. While the murder rate went down for all races, however, it stayed persistently high for one demographic group: young black males. Seventeen years after the arrival of crack in…
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The Va. Political Class in Action: Tidewater Edition
From the Daily Press: Federal prosecutors say they have evidence of congressional candidate Shaun Brown, a Democrat running as an independent, of “lying to an investor and falsifying campaign finance information to the Federal Elections Commission (FEC).” Brown currently faces charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and causing false records, wire fraud, theft of government…