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Mixed Evidence of Methadone Crackdown
An advocacy group's survey says police harassment of methadone patients is common. Statistics suggest methadone-related arrests are rare.
Soldiers, Prisoners, Casualties—A Drug War's Characters
Just because the drug trade and the law enforcement crusade against it aren't as obvious as they were in the past doesn't mean drugs and the war against them have disappeared from New York.
Heroin: From the Civil War to the 70s, and Beyond
The heroin story of the 1990s was ignored, by and large, until it became so popular that some among the white celebrity set developed addictions that subsequently received a good deal of publicity.
Cocaine: A Club Drug Becomes Enemy No. 1
Sometime in 1975, Colombian drug dealers, who were already well established in the world's marijuana market with their high-grade Colombian Gold, wrested control of the cocaine importation business from Cuban crime organizations operating in Florida and New York.
A Cop's Death Accelerates the City's War on Crack
On Feb. 26, 1988, members of a drug gang murdered a 22-year-old rookie police of?cer named Edward Byrne, who was sitting guard in a patrol car outside the home of a witness who had been threatened by the dealers' boys. After that, things were different.
Today's Drug War: Marijuana and Mass Arrests
Despite the extraordinarily low crime levels and the near total absence of drugs from the city's public discourse these days, nearly a quarter of a million people in New York City have been arrested for drugs over the past two years.
In the Drug War, a Stalemate?
City Limits estimates that the yearly cost to government for investigation, contraband seizures, arrests, judicial processing, incarceration, parole hearings and probation services for all those arrested in drug cases in New York City could run somewhere between $825 million and $1.7 billion.
The Meth Myth: A Drug that's Always on its Way
Like riding mowers or line dancing, meth—whether called "ice," "tina," "crank" or any of its dozen other names—has never really caught on in New York City.
Prosecutors See Risks in Rockefeller Reforms
In the past, prosecutors alone got to choose which defendants would be eligible to participate in drug court. Now judges have that power in a wide swath of cases.
After Rockefeller Reform, Drug Courts Face Big Test
While drug reformers see drug courts as preferable to prison, the courts do have critics. It remains to be seen if the drug courts' capacity and criteria can handle what the Rockefeller reforms are about to throw at them.
Casualty of War: One Addict's Saga of Punishment
By his own count, during his years as an addict Casimiro Steven Torres piled up 67 arrests for a variety of petty and not-so-petty crimes.
Sean Gardiner's 2009 in-depth investigation on the 40-Year War on Drugs in New York City.
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Seen Here First: The NYPD's Pot Play - Jarrett Murphy
New York police officials last week distanced themselves from an arrest tactic that nabbed small-time pot users who obeyed when cops asked them to empty their pockets. City Limits broke that story in 2009.
EVENTS
A Place at the Table
Wednesday, May 29, 2013
6:00pm -
Word for Word: Dan Savage
Thursday, May 30, 2013
Justice For All: Appleseed at 20
Thursday, June 20, 2013
6:00p - 9:00p
MULTIMEDIA
Doing Time
In 2008, 12,000 people were incarcerated in New York State on drug charges. Over the past 40 years the share of state prison cells occupied by drug convicts soared, then steadily declined. (From City Limits' summer 2009 investigation of the drug war in New York City).
Are the Kids All Doing It?
Recent city youth surveys show a slight dip in pot use and indicate that other drugs are substantially less popular. The 2007 survey revealed that white youths are more likely to use drugs than kids of other races or ethnicities, and that a greater percentage of Staten Island kids use drugs than in the other boroughs. (From City Limits' summer 2009 investigation of the drug war in New York City).
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CITY LIMITS EVENTS
Defining Brooklyn Launch
City Limits celebrates the launch of its March 2011 issue: Defining Brooklyn.The 35th Anniversary Celebration
City Limits celebrates its 35th Anniversary at BMCC in Tribeca.Brooklyn Bureau Launch
The Brooklyn Bureau launch as part of Social Media Week 2012.Tackling Poverty
The Tackling Poverty Series at Galapagos Art Space in the DUMBO section of Brooklyn.Tackling Poverty (Manhattan)
City Limits & the Institute for Children, Poverty, and Homelessness
