By MARK STEVENSON (AP) – Aug 21, 2009

MEXICO CITY — Mexico decriminalized small amounts of marijuana, cocaine and heroin on Friday — a move that prosecutors say makes sense even in the midst of the government’s grueling battle against drug traffickers.

Prosecutors said the new law sets clear limits that keep Mexico’s corruption-prone police from extorting casual users and offers addicts free treatment to keep growing domestic drug use in check.

“This is not legalization, this is regulating the issue and giving citizens greater legal certainty,” said Bernardo Espino del Castillo of the attorney general’s office.

The new law sets out maximum “personal use” amounts for drugs, also including LSD and methamphetamine. People detained with those quantities no longer face criminal prosecution.

Espino del Castillo says, in practice, small users almost never did face charges anyway. Under the previous law, the possession of any amount of drugs was punishable by stiff jail sentences, but there was leeway for addicts caught with smaller amounts.

“We couldn’t charge somebody who was in possession of a dose of a drug, there was no way … because the person would claim they were an addict,” he said.

Despite the provisions, police sometimes hauled in suspects and demanded bribes, threatening long jail sentences if people did not pay.

“The bad thing was that it was left up to the discretion of the detective, and it could open the door to corruption or extortion,” Espino del Castillo said.

Anyone caught with drug amounts under the new personal-use limit will be encouraged to seek treatment, and for those caught a third time treatment is mandatory.

The maximum amount of marijuana for “personal use” under the new law is 5 grams — the equivalent of about four joints. The limit is a half gram for cocaine, the equivalent of about 4 “lines.” For other drugs, the limits are 50 milligrams of heroin, 40 milligrams for methamphetamine and 0.015 milligrams for LSD.

Mexico has emphasized the need to differentiate drug addicts and casual users from the violent traffickers whose turf battles have contributed to the deaths of more than 11,000 people since President Felipe Calderon took office in late 2006.

But one expert saw potential for conflict under the new law.

Javier Oliva, a political scientist at Mexico’s National Autonomous University, said the new law posed “a serious contradiction” for the Calderon administration.

“If they decriminalize drugs it could lead the army, which has been given the task of combating this, to say ‘What are we doing’?” he said.

Officials said the legal changes could help the government focus more on big-time traffickers.

Espino del Castillo said since Calderon took office, there have been over 15,000 police searches related to small-scale drug dealing or possession, with 95,000 people detained — but only 12 to 15 percent of whom were ever charged with anything.

Copyright © 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

By KEVIN HALL

Updated 9:00 AM PDT, Tue, Sep 15, 2009

Argentina’s Sinapsis design studio has come up with this “After Office Tie” that’ll seamlessly take you from your nine-to-five to your five-’til-last-call. Nothing too fancy here, nor is the bottle opener even hidden. It’s right at the tip of the tie — your coworkers will know you’re ready to party.

The “After Office Tie” is one of 100 shortlisted entries in a contest by Designboom and will be displayed in the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London.

Designboom, via Crunch Gear

For more gadget news, check out DVICE.com.

By R. STICKNEY

Updated 3:01 PM PDT, Mon, Sep 14, 2009

People trying to smuggle illegal immigrants into the U.S. have used hidden compartments in cars, tractor trailers, boats and even tunnels.

U.S. Border Patrol agents report they confiscated a WaveRunner along the Imperial Beach coastline Saturday night that they believe was used to help two men cross the U.S./Mexico border illegally.

At about 9:20 p.m., an agent reported seeing a watercraft heading north into the U.S. from Mexico. Once the agents arrived at Seacoast Drive they found the abandoned Yamaha WaveRunner but no one else. They searched the area and arrested two men hiding in a bush near the WaveRunner, agents said.

Upon questioning, agents charged one of the arrestees with human smuggling and seized the Yamaha WaveRunner.

Updated 7:26 AM PDT, Tue, Sep 15, 200

Tessa Medearis may have only been 18 at the time, but she knew Ian Kinney was the love of her life.  “He was the one for me. I know it. I never wanted to leave him.”

But in July 2008, Ian Kinney was taken from Tessa by a drunk driver.  It happened at about 6 p.m. on State Route 78 as the couple drove in a Lexus from Julian to Vista.

“Out of the corner of my eye I see this white flash,” said Medearis.  The white flash was a white Chevy pick up truck that CHP investigators say El Cajon resident Shannon Shimp was driving.  According to investigators, Shimp was driving erratically, weaving in and out of traffic, when he lost control and broadsided Kinney and Medearis.

“I looked over at Ian and I knew it was pretty much over,”said Medearis.  “The car was pushed inside of him, there was blood everywhere and it wasn’t mine.”

Kinney was pronounced dead at the scene.  A passenger in Shimp’s truck, Joseph Edwards, 52, was also killed.

Medearis was alive but seriously injured.  Both her hands were shattered, her spine fractured and both feet broken.  “And my thumb was really bad it was actually in the middle of my hand,” Medearis said.

None of the injuries compared to the pain in her heart, she said, after losing the love of her life.  She is hoping an East County jury will convict Shimp on two counts of second degree murder.

“If we let someone out there that’s killed two people, what’s to stop them from doing it again,” Medearis said.

Closing arguments begin on Tuesday and the jury could get the case later that morning.

The defense has argued that this is not a murder case.  Shimp’s attorney told jurors that the back tires on the truck had low tire pressure, which may have played a role in the crash.

If convicted on all counts, Shimp could get 30 years to life in prison.

First Published: Sep 14, 2009 10:08 PM PDT

Updated 8:45 AM PDT, Tue, Sep 15, 2009

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said today that the worst recession since the Great Depression has probably come to an end.

“The recession is very likely over at this point,” Bernanke said at the Brookings Institution.

Bernanke made the blockbuster announcement and said he is confident Congress will help guard against another financial meltdown of this magnitude with legislation that will help rewrite the U.S. financial playbook because the collapse was “too big a calamity” for the government to ignore.

“I feel quite confident that a comprehensive reform will be forthcoming,” he said.

Updated 8:30 AM PDT, Tue, Sep 15, 2009

Meet the Geriatric Bandits: One has a cane, the other needs an oxygen mask. They’re old enough to be your grandfather. This past week, they’ve both robbed banks. And one is still at large.

On Saturday, a man carrying an inhaler or an oxygen tank robbed the San Diego National Bank in La Jolla. The man, wearing a white beret, argyle sweater and sports coat, walked into the bank on Ivanhoe Avenue with a demand note.  In the picture caught by surveillance cameras, he looks to be in his 70s. An oxygen tube appears to hang from his face.

Investigators don’t know if he was armed, but they do know that he got away with some cash. Just look at him – would you stop him?

Then, two days later, another bank robbery. This time, the target was the Bank of America on El Cajon Blvd in City Heights. A 70-year old man — with cane, mind you — walked into the bank with a note and demanded a large amount of cash.

The bank manager attempted to evacuate the bank and lock the suspect inside, but Geriatric Bandit No. 2 was too crafty. Despite dozens of police cars surrounding the bank, he hobbled out of the bank using a side door and tried to hide on the porch of a home a few blocks away.

Police found him lying on the porch and arrested him — maybe his bright red hawaiian shirt gave him away.

First Published: Sep 15, 2009 7:47 AM PDT

Man jumps out of private ambulance onto Hollywood Freeway and is killed by another car – LA Daily News.