Sam Smith – I first met Isaac Fulwood in 1967 when I did a feature for the Capitol East Gazette on neighborhood policing and went with Fulwood and his partner on their beat. The pair had been specifically assigned to deal with youth problems and community relations. Less than a year before the riots that … Continue reading A different cop story
Law
Legalize drugs, delegalize our culture
Sam Smith After listening to two friends debate the legalization of marijuana (the opponent, incidentally, sipping some vodka as he did so), I was reminded again of the degree to which we have become addicted to the law as a primary way to solve life’s problems. From the multi-page documents we accept unread in order … Continue reading Legalize drugs, delegalize our culture
Surprises at the courthouse
SAM SMITH, 1999 - The October issue was late because your editor was tied up in a six-hour voir dire for a double-robbery case. In the end, I maintained my perfect record of having never sat through a full trial. As a Coast Guard officer I was bounced from two courts martial and I have … Continue reading Surprises at the courthouse
Why banning human nature doesn’t work
Sam Smith We managed to get through the first two hundred years of America with less than half as many laws as we now seem to feel necessary. There is, however, little evidence that the contemporary prohibitionary glut has done us much good. Instead, during our most recent period, American culture, empire and communities began … Continue reading Why banning human nature doesn’t work
In the courthouse
Sam Smith, 1999 - The October issue was late because your editor was tied up in a six-hour voir dire for a double-robbery case. In the end, I maintained my perfect record of having never sat as a through a full trial. As a Coast Guard officer I was bounced from two courts martial, and … Continue reading In the courthouse