Drug Policy

Major League Baseball announced Wednesday that Orioles minor league catcher Brian Ward has been suspended for 50 games for his second violation of the minor leagues' drug treatment and prevention program. The commissioner's office did not specify what he used but stated it was “a drug of abuse.” Ward, 26, was in the Orioles' big league camp for several weeks this spring as a nonroster invitee. A nondrafted free agent in 2009, Ward batted .254 in 104 games at High-A Frederick.

As the federal government shifts its drug control strategy toward drug treatment and education initiatives, the U.S. drug czar said Wednesday at an event in Baltimore that he plans to emphasize the expansion of drug courts to divert nonviolent offenders to treatment instead of prison. Gil Kerlikowske, director of national drug control policy, announced the changes at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine as he laid out his goals for the year. The former Seattle police chief said there would be no official change in the federal stance that marijuana is an illegal and harmful drug, a hot issue since two states voted to allow its use last year.

A second Orioles minor-league catcher has been suspended for violating the Minor League Drug Prevention and Treatment Progam. Michael Ohlman received a 50-game suspension for his second violation of the drug policy, the office of the commissioner of baseball announced Tuesday. The suspension was for a drug of abuse, which means it was not for use of a performance-enhancing drug. This spring, catcher Brian Ward also received a 50-game suspension. Ohlman's suspension will begin immediately, but he is currently recovering from a shoulder injury sustained during an automobile accident during spring training.

Right-hander Daniel McCutchen, whom the Orioles signed to a minor league deal this winter and was sent out of camp March 23, has been suspended for 50 games for violating the league's drug policy for using a banned substance. According to a Major League Baseball press release, McCutchen tested positive for Methenolone and a metabolite of Trenbolone. The suspension begins immediately. McCutchen, 29, was 1-0 with a 6.14 ERA in 7 1/3 innings over seven games this spring with the Orioles.

The week before the legislative session ended, Maryland's General Assembly hosted Michael Phelps to recognize his achievements at the Beijing Olympics. Just two months after critics claimed his career and reputation would never recover from the infamous photo of him apparently smoking marijuana that circulated the Internet, state senators and delegates honored him with a standing ovation. The incident underscores what some recognize as a shift away from the disproportionately "tough on crime" attitude for which Maryland legislators have been known.

Clemson, South Carolina. -- Are you ready for the fastest jump in heroin use in this country's history? Are you ready for heroin to take the place of cocaine as the illegal drug of choice? Well, get ready, unless we reform our current, federally dominated drug policy.The federal government's marijuana interdiction program has sharply decreased imports. The result: The price of high-quality marijuana has skyrocketed to twice the price of gold. No part of the federal government's drug program operates in a vacuum, however.

CHICAGO - For some time, critics have been saying that the war hasn't been going well, has forced us to overextend ourselves and is gobbling up far too many tax dollars. But many of them were skeptical about this effort from the start. The surprise is that President Bush now seems to be moving their way on the war. Not the war in Iraq - the war on drugs. Early on, the Bush administration took a consistently hard line against recreational substances and those who use them - vigorously opposing state medical marijuana initiatives, objecting when Canada considered decriminalizing marijuana and accusing potheads of subsidizing terrorism.

Annapolis Drug Policy Director Eric Avery resigned yesterday, leaving the future of the department in question.Avery said his decision to resign came after weeks of talks with Mayor Alfred A. Hopkins over the direction of the department, but he did not give specifics. Hesaid the decision was "mutual.""We're just not compatible in our philosophies of how to solve the problems, and you have to decide whether you can get the support todo the things you want to do," Avery said. "I'm really happy and proud of what we've been able to do here.

Carroll County school system officials stand behind a decision to suspend two 5-year-old girls for unauthorized possession of a prescription medicine. The suspensions were in line with the county schools' drug policy.School board President John D. Meyers Jr. said yesterday he had not yet reviewed details of the case, but he generally favored a strong and consistent discipline in the schools.The two Westminster Elementary School kindergartners, whose names were not released, were suspended last Thursday and Friday after reportedly exchanging prescription bottled medicine while riding a school bus.Westminster Elementary Principal Larry Thompson confirmed the suspensions, but he was reluctant to say much more about the decision, except that it was "uncommon."

Two years ago, my 23-year-old brother became addicted to painkillers after breaking his leg and undergoing several operations to repair it. Last year, while he was checking into rehab for abusing OxyContin, I was drafting a chapter in my new book calling for drug legalization. It was a difficult moment to believe in individual liberty: I felt firsthand the effects of what it's like when people make bad decisions. I saw how hard my brother struggled to get clean, first moving forward and then backsliding again into substance abuse.

Regarding your editorial on the proposed legalization of medical marijuana in Maryland, it's true that anyone in California who wants a medical marijuana recommendation can get one ("Due caution," March 12). The recommendation allows consumers to purchase locally grown marijuana of known quality and safety from dispensaries that generate tax revenue. That's a good thing. So-called medical marijuana abuses are not to be feared. It's the status quo that's scary. As long as there is a demand for marijuana, there will be a supply.

Maryland defensive lineman Isaiah Ross has been suspended for a year for violations of university policy. Another player -- offensive lineman Pete White -- is leaving the team although he remains enrolled at the school. Ross is also still enrolled. Maryland would not offer details about Ross. The only offense cited in the university's "Policy on Conduct and Ethics for Student-Athletes" and the "Drug Policy for Student-Athletes" that specifically mandates a year-long suspension is a third violation of the drug policy.

If the goal of marijuana prohibition is to subsidize Mexican drug cartels, prohibition is a success ("The nonsense of marijuana busts shown," Nov. 11). The drug war distorts supply and demand dynamics so that big money grows on little trees. There is a reason you don't see drug cartels sneaking into national forests to cultivate tomatoes and cucumbers. They cannot compete with legitimate farmers. If the goal of marijuana prohibition is to deter use, prohibition is a failure. The United States has double the rate of marijuana use as the Netherlands, where marijuana is legally available.

I couldn't agree more with Dan Rodricks ' recent column on marijuana policy ("The nonsense of marijuana busts shown," Nov. 11). It should be apparent to all except those with a vested interest in keeping marijuana banned that our entire "war on drugs," and especially the nation's marijuana policy, has utterly failed. It has failed for the same reason the ban on alcohol failed during Prohibition - there simply is so much demand for marijuana that no amount of tax dollars can stop the supply.

Ravens tight end Ed Dickson only suffered a sprained right shoulder against the Atlanta Falcons and didn't incur any structural damage Thursday night as a magnetic resonance imaging exam confirmed the initial diagnosis, according to a source. With rest and rehabilitation, Dickson is projected to return in time for the Sept. 10 season opener against the Cincinnati Bengals at M&T Bank Stadium. Dickson is heading into his second season as the starter after catching 54 passes for 528 yards and five touchdowns last season.

Ravens defensive end Ryan McBean broke his left ankle Thursday night against the Atlanta Falcons at the Georgia Dome, a league source confirmed. It's a fracture dislocation and it will require surgery, according to the source. McBean is scheduled to visit Dr. Robert Anderson on Monday for further examination. Anderson is the noted Charlotte, N.C. orthopedist who performed Pro Bowl outside linebacker Terrell Suggs' surgery to repair a partially torn Achilles tendon. He's regarded as the top doctor of choice for NFL players dealing with foot and ankle injuries.

IT TOOK the threat of Congress and a steroid scandal that cast a shadow over the game's best players and most hallowed records. But, hey, whoever said baseball wouldn't eventually get it? With progress coming at this prehistoric rate, commissioner Bud Selig and union chief Donald Fehr will soon announce they're hard at work inventing the wheel. 'Round and 'round we go. In the Olympics, a first-time offense for violating the World Anti-Doping Agency's policy of banned substances earns an offender a two-year suspension.

Inside the posh Harbor Court Hotel, an international cast was gathering yesterday morning to debate drug policy. But pacing on the sidewalk outside was a real expert."

I just read about the 23 bodies found in Mexico due to drug wars. It makes me sick that people are dying for marijuana. I don't smoke marijuana, but I did when I was younger and almost everyone I know did. How do we justify our drug policy that kills people in our neighboring country? Legalizing marijuana would end this travesty. Didn't we learn anything from prohibition? Or are we so callous because it only kills people in another country and the poor of our country? The only moral issue here is ignoring the suffering of others - not the use of this relatively harmless drug!

When he was in elementary school, Maryland guard Terrell Stoglin - already talented - created a scrapbook about his basketball skills. “No one can stop him,” Stoglin wrote. No one, it seems, but himself. On Monday, Maryland confirmed that Stoglin - a prodigious scorer who took a higher percentage of the team's total shots last season than almost any Terp in the last 60 years - had been suspended for a year for violating rules governing student athletes. Stoglin, a sophomore, entered his name for the NBA draft on Sunday, the last day a player could sign up for the June 28th draft.