The Carbondale Observer

I haven’t written a post in quite awhile. I was travelling earlier in the month and I’ve been preoccupied with other matters since then. I thought I’d write a catch-all post commenting on a few of the things I missed.

City Council 9/6/11:  Nothing much happened at this one. The micro-distillery ordinance was a good idea and I’m glad it passed. Still no action on the refuse and recycling rates, but it’s back on the agenda for tonight’s meeting.

Murder on Brush Street: Another murder in Carbondale, and it looks like this one was committed with a gun stolen from the chief of police. There was an armed robbery on the same block on the Saturday before the shooting. I wonder if the two events might be connected. Either way, I think I’ll stay away from the 400 block of North Brush St.

Brush Towers Riot: The administration swung into action trying to spin this one, and the Southern Illinoisan helped carry the water. Check out the pictures on the Daily Egyptian’s site. It looks like a rowdy party until you get to the photos of the beating in progress and the victim on the ground with blood coming from his nose. Not a riot, huh? I’m sure the spin must have fooled someone. I’m glad the administration has decided to investigate the incident. The people responsible for the beatings should be expelled and prosecuted.

SIU Enrollment Drops: Here’s another example of administration spin. Most of what I’d say has already been said on Deo Volente. I will say that I didn’t expect enrollment to turn around overnight. Cheng has been in office for just over a year and that isn’t enough time to turn everything around. But I’m put off by the spin.

Strikes at SIUC: Four SIUC unions are planning to take strike votes later this month. I think a strike is likely to fail, and I think the administration knows it. The union leaders must think otherwise. I guess we’ll see who’s right soon enough. But if I belonged to a union that had substantially fewer than half the represented employees as members, I’d be very reluctant to vote for a strike.

City Council: Meets tonight, and there is a lot on the agenda. The main things are proposed reforms to the primary election system, the District 95 summer reading and math program, the recycling and refuse fees, and the chicken ordinance. I’ll be watching on channel 16.

Comments are welcome.

I just want to post a short item on the bath salts ban the city council passed Tuesday. Council members Jack, Adams, and Wissmann are correct on this issue. Drug prohibition, like alcohol prohibition, has been a blistering failure. We have more crime, more violence, and likely more drug use than we would have if we hadn’t wandered down the prohibition path.

Furthermore, drug prohibition has resulted in a policy of mass incarceration of African Americans and, in some states, their disfranchisement. Drug prohibition may or may not be intended to be racist, but it is racist in its effects.

Sometimes people argue for drug legalization, but I think that’s the wrong way to frame the discussion. Caffeine is a legal drug. Anyone of any age can buy and consume caffeine. No special license is required to sell caffeine at retail; any store licensed to do business can sell Coca Cola. No one suggests that even the most benign of the currently prohibited drugs be legal in the way that caffeine is legal.

Instead, we should be talking about replacing prohibition with regulation. When you buy a bottle of Maker’s Mark, you know that it contains 45% alcohol by volume, and you can adjust your consumption accordingly. And not just anyone can buy that bottle. You have to be 21 years old. Further, a special license is required to sell alcohol. It is a regulated drug.

When a cocaine user buys a bag of white powder, he or she has no way of knowing how much of that powder is cocaine and how much is some other substance. The consumer doesn’t even know what those other substances might be and whether they are harmful. Anyone of any age who has enough money and can find a dealer can buy that bag of white powder. Anyone who is willing to violate the law can sell it. The law may refer to drugs as controlled substances, but in reality we exert very little control over them.

Prohibition does not protect the consumers of currently illegal drugs, and it does not protect society at large. It’s time to replace prohibition with regulation. In passing the bath salts ban, Carbondale took a step in the wrong direction.

I want to be clear. I’m not endorsing drug use. In general, people are better off if they choose not to use recreational drugs. I’m only arguing that it is not appropriate for society to attempt to make that decision for people and to use the coercive power of the law to enforce that choice.

For the record, council members Lance Jack, Jane Adams, and Chris Wissmann voted against the ban. Council members Don Monty, Lee Fronabarger, and Corene McDaniel voted for the ban. Mayor Joel Fritzler broke the tie and voted for the measure.

Comments are welcome.

The Southern Illinoisan is reporting on a police standoff at Tan Tara Mobile Home Park on Saturday. The Southern article isn’t very detailed but there is more information on the Carbondale Police website:

Officer learned McCree brandished a weapon and made verbal threats to the victim and officers. McCree refused to surrender himself to officers. Neighboring trailers were evacuated and a perimeter was established. Negotiators made contact with McCree but he refused to surrender himself. The Police Department Special Response Team executed a search warrant at the trailer and chemical munitions were deployed. McCree immediately fled the residence and was taken into custody without incident. There were no injuries as a result of the arrest. McCree was charged with domestic battery and aggravated assault and incarcerated in the Jackson County Jail.

Police had been to the residence Friday night on a domestic disturbance call and decided to arrest McCree, who had already left the home. When he returned on Saturday, police received another call, which led to the standoff. The police also released a photo of the suspect:

Gregory S. McCree - Age 35 (Source: Carbondale Police Department)

The police press release doesn’t say what kind of weapon McCree brandished. It must have been quite a weapon if police evacuated the neighbors.

Comments are welcome.

I don’t know how I missed Tuesday’s Southern Illinoisan article about the botched retrial against mob action murder suspect Trevis Thompson in a 2003 shooting case. It looks like there is a dispute about who’s to blame for the dismissal in the case:

The shooting victim, Brad DeDecker, says the Jackson County State’s Attorney’s office dropped the ball. But prosecutors contend DeDecker declined to testify, which DeDecker angrily denies.

The Southern reported a couple of weeks ago that the State’s Attorney dropped the case because the victim refused to testify. At the time, I wondered why a shooting victim would refuse to testify. Intimidation was the only reason I could think of. DeDecker denies refusing to testify, but the Southern reports intimidation likely took place:  Read the rest of this entry »

The Carbondale Police Department has released more information about Saturday’s mob action and murder, including pictures of the suspects. From the news release:

The City of Carbondale Police Department Investigation Bureau conducted an investigation into this incident throughout the weekend. During the course of the investigation, officers arrested Trevis Thompson and Patrick Greene and charged them with Aggravated Battery, Mob Action and Murder. Both were incarcerated in the Jackson County Jail. The investigation revealed this incident was a result of a personal dispute between acquaintances.

And the photos: Read the rest of this entry »

As I’m sure everyone knows, there was a fight Saturday morning (Friday night) that lead to the death of one man, Orlando Clark, and the hospitalization of another man, Antonio Pugh. The Carbondale Police Department released this statement:

On November 20, 2010 at approximately 1:30 a.m., the City of Carbondale Police Department responded to a report of a large crowd fighting in the 100 block of South University.  Upon arrival, officers discovered that Orlando Lamont Clark, 34, a Carbondale resident, had been seriously injured during the fight.  Clark was taken to Memorial Hospital of Carbondale where he later succumbed to his wounds.  Officers were also notified that Antonio Pugh, 28, a Carbondale resident, was at Memorial Hospital of Carbondale being treated for injuries he sustained during the same incident.

Two suspects are in custody and the investigation continues.  Should any further information become available it will be released Monday, November 22, 2010, at 12:00 p.m.  Anyone with information about the incident is encouraged to contact the police department at 457-3200 or Crime Stoppers at 549-COPS (2677).  Anonymous tips may also be made by selecting the “Crime Stoppers” tab located on the main page of this web site. Read the rest of this entry »