Ray Brook, NY, Nov 02, 2011 — Federal judges are beginning to review changes in sentencing guidelines that will shorten the sentences of thousands of men and women jailed on crack cocaine charges. The shift could affect inmates at the Federal prison in Ray Brook.

As Brian Mann reports, drug sentencing laws have been changing, based on concerns that crack laws unfairly targeted African Americans.  Go to full article

Plattsburgh, NY, Dec 27, 2010 — Congressman Bill Owens is one of a group of lawmakers working on a law designed to slow drug trafficking from Canada into the U.S.
A bill passed by both houses of Congress calls on the Office of National Drug Control Policy to craft a multi-agency and international strategy to tighten up on drug smugglers without hurting tourism and other commercial traffic across the northern border.
Martha Foley has more.  Go to full article

Canton, NY, Oct 21, 2010 — Ruben Garcia is a human rights advocate who lives on the U.S.-Mexico border. For more than 30 years, he has run Annunciation House, an emergency shelter for migrants and the homeless in El Paso, Texas. Garcia will speak to students and the public at St. Lawrence University in Canton today. The issue of border security, illegal drugs and immigration is complex along the southern border. He'll give a presentation, titled "The Border as a Prophet: Voices Calling us to Justice", in St. Lawrence's Carnegie 10 at 7 pm. Garcia joined Todd Moe in the studio this morning for a first person account on the effects of beefed-up military patrols, the drugs wars, human rights and life along the southern border.  Go to full article

Riverhead, NY, Aug 23, 2010 — Last year the New York State Legislature voted to give drug addicts a second chance, by doing away with the last remnants of the Rockefeller drug laws. Some considered the old laws draconian and reformers praised the change saying it could stop the addiction cycle by diverting addicts bound for prison and instead send them to treatment. For the last couple months, reporter Charles Lane has been investigating how this judicial diversion has been implemented so far across the state. And he finds that the impact of the reforms largely depends on which county the addict is convicted in. Photos and timeline courtesy of WSHU.  Go to full article

Malone, NY, Aug 23, 2010 — Earlier this morning, we heard about drug sentences handed down under the newly-reformed Rockefeller drug laws. The reforms lifted the Rockefeller laws' sentencing mandates, giving judges in New York's 62 counties discretion in sentencing. In his story, Charles Lane introduced us to two people...one was sentenced by a Long island judge to a rehab program, though she was convicted for drug sales. The other was sentenced in Saratoga County to do time at Bare Hill Correctional facility in Malone, not rehab, though he was an addict looking for treatment.  Go to full article

Apr 05, 2010 — The Vermont Senate is expected to take a final vote this week on a bill that would phase out the chemical bisphenol-A in some types of packaging. The bill would ban use of the chemical in reusable food and beverage containers, as well as infant formula and baby food containers. Planned Parenthood of Northern New England says BPA has been linked to a high number of health problems, including infertility, miscarriage, and breast and prostate cancer. The American Chemistry Council, an industry group, maintains that it is safe and helps keep food safe by keeping it fresh.

There's been a rise in reports of behavioral disorders in kids over the past decade or so. Some researchers say genetics, lack of sleep, and chaotic households all contribute to things like ADHD. Now researchers say another cause could be personal care products. Julie Grant reports.  Go to full article

Ann Arbor, MI, Jul 27, 2009 — A new report tracks illegal drug use by looking at wastewater. Rebecca Williams has more.  Go to full article

Hogansburg, NY, Jul 02, 2009 — Police arrested eight people and seized more than $1.3 million in cash this week in connection with a large drug smuggling ring operating between the North Country and Ohio. Martha Foley has more.  Go to full article

Ann Arbor, MI, Apr 21, 2009 — Clean water rules dating back to the 1970s have made dramatic differences in the health of US waterways. But there's increasing recognition of a new threat - one that's traced back not to big industrial plants, but to household drains. The drugs we take are showing up in our drinking water, and they're showing up in fish. The federal government's now saying that in most cases, you should never flush unused drugs down the drain. There are safer ways to dispose of them. But even if you want to do the right thing, it's not always easy. Rebecca Williams takes a look at what you should and should not do with your medications.  Go to full article

Apr 10, 2009 — Last week, the Center for Public Integrity released an exhaustive investigation on the confluence of illegal tobacco, drugs, and organized crime on the Mohawk reservations on the St. Lawrence River. Yesterday we spoke with the report's author.

Today, the Mohawks' side of things. Chiefs of the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe near Massena say Canada and the United States are raising cigarette taxes without considering historic tribal rights to trade tobacco. Chief Jim Ransom says the author of the Center for Public Integrity report didn't even request an interview with tribal chiefs. The Mohawks have endured a reputation as smugglers even before tobacco companies worked with some natives to traffic untaxed cigarettes into Canada in the 1990s. This year's surprise hit film, Frozen River, has brought Akwesasne's reputation to the big screen and the nation. Chief Ransom told David Sommerstein he condemns the drug trafficking and crime that happens in Akwesasne. But he says the characterization ignores the history of oppression and environmental degradation brought on the Mohawks.  Go to full article