Marijuana Ruling Could Signal End of Prohibition on Pot

It's legal to light up in Colorado and Washington, and soon smoking pot could be legalized across the country following a decision Thursday by the federal government.

After Washington state and Colorado passed laws in November 2012 legalizing the consumption and sale of marijuana for adults over 18, lawmakers in both states waited to see whether the federal government would continue to prosecute pot crimes under federal statutes in their states.

Both Colorado and Washington have been working to set up regulatory systems in order to license and tax marijuana growers and retail sellers, but have been wary of whether federal prosecutors would come after them for doing so. They are the first states to legalize pot, and therefore to go through the process of trying to set up a regulatory system.

Consumption and sale of marijuana is still illegal in all other states, though some cities and towns have passed local laws decriminalizing it or making it a low priority for law enforcement officers. There are also movements in many states to legalize pot, including legalization bills introduced in Maine and Rhode Island, discussion of possible bills in states including Massachusetts and Vermont, and talk of ballot initiatives in California and Oregon.

But on Thursday, the Department of Justice announced that it would not prosecute marijuana crimes that were legal under state law, a move that could signal the end of the country's longtime prohibition on pot is nearing. "It certainly appears to be potentially the beginning of the end," said Paul Armantano, deputy director of the pot lobby group NORML.

The memo sent to states Thursday by the DOJ said that as long as states set up comprehensive regulations governing marijuana, there would be no need for the federal government to step in, a decision that will save the Justice Department from having to use its limited resources on prosecuting individuals for growing or smoking marijuana.

"This memo appears to be sending the message to states regarding marijuana prohibition that is a recognition that a majority of the public and in some states majority of lawmakers no longer want to continue down the road of illegal cannabis, and would rather experiment with different regulatory schemes of license and retail sale of cannabis," Armantano said.

Richard Collins, a law professor at the University of Colorado Boulder, said that the memo from the DOJ points out specifically that the federal government will only walk away from marijuana crimes in states where there is a solid regulatory system for the drug's growth and disemenation.

For other states to mimic the systems in Colorado and Washington, they will first have to get legalization laws on their ballots or in their state houses, which could post a challenge, he said.

While Colorado and Washington have not yet set up their regulatory systems, both states will likely sell licenses to farmers who want to grow marijuana as well as to manufacturing plants and retail sellers. The marijuana will also likely be taxed at each stage of its growth, processing, and sale.

"In both Colorado and Washington, legalization was done by citizens with no participation by elected representatives until they had to pass laws to comply with the initiative. In other initiative states I would expect such measures - I would expect a new one in California, for instance - and roughly half the states permit this and the rest don't.

"In the states that do have initiatives I expect efforts to get it on the ballot. The other half it will be much tougher. It's hard to get elected representatives to do this," Collins said.

Armantano is more optimistic about the spread of legalized pot. He compared the DOJ's announcement to the federal government's actions toward the end of alcohol prohibition in America a century ago, when states decided to stop following the federal ban on alcohol sales and the federal government said it would not step in and prosecute crimes.

"For first time we now have clear message from fed government saying they will not stand in way of states that wish to implement alternative regulatory schemes in lieu of federal prohibition," Armantano said.

He predicted that within the next one to three years, five or six other states may join Colorado and Washington in legalizing the drug, setting the stage for the rest of the country to follow.

Jim Pasco, executive director of the Fraternal Order of Police, the nation's largest police union, was disappointed with the Justice Department's decision, but said that he had already reached out to set up meetings to talk with leadership in the department and he was "open to discussion" about the benefits.

"I would tell you that certainly the overwhelming majority of law enforcement officers oppose legalization," he said, "but that is not to say that we're not willing to have a conversation about it. It is, from our perspective, a gateway drug and opinions to the contrary don't have the weight of fact behind them."

"We want to talk to (the DOJ) about their thought process and ours and where the disconnect is," he said. "From our perspective the only fault with the status quo is that we aren't making a bigger dent and we'd like to make a bigger one."

Kelly LeBrock: '80s Sex Symbol Out of Hiding

Kelly LeBrock was one of the sexiest women in Hollywood in the '80s.

But these days, she spends a lot of her time shoveling horse manure. And that's just the way she likes it.

In an interview with the British newspaper The Daily Mail, LeBrock, who rose to stardom in the movies "The Woman in Red" and "Weird Science," has spoken publicly for the first time in years about turning her back on stardom and leaving Hollywood for a ranch in Santa Barbara, California.

"I grow all my veggies and make my own cheese and yogurt," LeBrock said. "It's bloody exhausting!" said the American actress (who spent her childhood in England). "To work the land full time keeps me so fit that I haven't worked out in seven years. I clean the pool myself, muck out the pigs and the horses."

But she also has peace of mind, and her horse Kiwi to keep her company. "Sometimes I sleep three nights in a row outside with no tent, just under the stars," LeBrock said. "Just me and my horse. It brings me closer to the earth."

[Related: Hey, Why Not? Universal Announces 'Weird Science' Remake]

Born in New York and raised in London, 53-year-old LeBrock began modeling professionally when she was 15 years old. After becoming a top fashion model appearing regularly in Vogue and Harpers Bazaar, LeBrock fell into drugs and the party lifestyle.

"I didn't want to get hooked on heroin and die like some of my friends," LeBrock said. "I decided to change my lifestyle and quit modeling and go to the next obvious thing, movies."

LeBrock moved to California and met film producer Victor Drai. They married in 1984, and while the relationship only lasted two years, he did help her land the title role in "The Woman in Red," in which she played a sexy-but-mysterious lady who becomes an object of obsessive desire for Gene Wilder.

"It was a thrilling experience," LeBrock said, "Not only did it help me cut my teeth on movie making, but it also placed me at the movie’s center, which, I must say, overwhelmed me."

[Related: 'Weird Science' beauty Kelly LeBrock greets the little maniacs at CES]


From left: Anthony Michael Hall, LeBrock, and Ilan Mitchell-Smith in 'Weird Science' (Photo: Everett)
LeBrock's status as a sex symbol was solidified when she played Lisa, the perfect woman designed by a pair of lustful teenage boys, in the comedy "Weird Science."
LeBrock's life took an unexpected turn when she met Steven Seagal, then an aspiring actor, during a publicity trip to Japan in 1987. The two fell in love and got married, though LeBrock would later learn Seagal hadn't fully finalized his divorces to his first two wives when she said "I do."

LeBrock and Seagal had three children, but they were said to have a stormy relationship, and while LeBrock has refused to comment on rumors that Seagal was an abusive husband, in a 2010 interview she said, "I was constantly raped and abused my whole life,” without naming culprits. The couple split up in 1996.

"I admit, I became a hermit," LeBrock told the Mail. "When I split with Steven, the divorce was very ugly, and details of the case were on the evening news. I didn't want my kids seeing it, so I simply got rid of the TV. I moved my kids out of L.A. so they could grow up with real people — the kids of gas pump attendants, plumbers, and real family people … I decided to swap my old life in Beverly Hills for a new one in the country, in Santa Barbara."

LeBrock says that the experience has been good for her and her kids, but she's hoping to get back into the acting game. She's made four movies since 2000, and has a fifth — a thriller called "Hidden Affairs" — slated for release this year. She also does volunteer work with Club Carson, a support group for children with terminal cancer. And she's working on an autobiography — a cautionary tale for young people making their way into the entertainment business.

"I see kids like Lindsay Lohan going off the rails because she has no one there for her," LeBrock said. "Lindsay reminds me of a 12-year-old, like a little girl stuck in a young woman's body, with all the drugs and alcohol."

Photo finish: Relive the weekend in sports

Red Bull's Diving World Series thrilled Boston spectators on Friday. What else happened in sports over the weekend?
Artem Silchenko of Russia dives from the 27.5 meter (roughly 90 feet) platform on the ICA building at the Fan Pier in Boston on August 25, 2013. (Photo by Dean Treml/Red Bull via Getty Images)

Jonathan Paredes of Mexico dives from the 27.5 meter (roughly 90 feet) platform on the ICA building at the Fan Pier in Boston on August 25, 2013. (Photo by Dean Treml/Red Bull via Getty Images)

Isolated Mashco-Piro Indians appear in Peru

LIMA, Peru (AP) — Members of an Indian tribe that has long lived in voluntary isolation in Peru's southeastern Amazon attempted to make contact with outsiders for a second time since 2011, leading to a tense standoff at a river hamlet.

Authorities are unsure what provoked the three-day encounter but say the Mashco-Piro may be upset by illegal logging in their territory as well as drug smugglers who pass through. Oil and gas exploration also affects the region.

The more than 100 members of Mashco-Piro clan appeared across the Las Piedras river from the remote community of Monte Salvado in the Tambopata region of Madre de Dios state from June 24-26, said Klaus Quicque, president of the regional FENAMAD indigenous federation.

They asked for bananas, rope and machetes from the local Yine people but were dissuaded from crossing the river by FENAMAD rangers posted at the settlement, said Quicque, who directed them to a banana patch on their side of the river.

The incident on the Las Piedras is chronicled in video shot by one of the rangers and obtained Monday by The Associated Press.

"You can see in the images there was a lot of threatening — the intention of crossing. They practically reached mid-river," Quicque said by phone from Puerto Maldonado, the regional capital.

The video shows Mashco-Piro of all ages and sexes, including men with lances, bows and arrows. In one image shot during a moment of tension, a man flexes his bow, ready to shoot.

Quicque said the estimated 110-150 people living in Monte Salvado "feared for their lives." He credited the ranger, Rommel Ponciano, for keeping a cool head.

He said 23 Mashco-Piro appeared on the first day, 110 on the second and 25 on the third. The clan left and hasn't returned.

"They spoke a variant of Yine," Quicque said, but Ponciano understood only about two-thirds of the words.

The Mashco-Piro live by their own social code, which includes kidnapping other tribes' women and children, according to Carlos Soria, a Lima professor and former head of Peru's park protection agency.

Peruvian law prohibits physical contact with the estimated 15 "uncontacted" tribes in Peru that together are estimated to number between 12,000 and 15,000 people living in jungles east of the Andes. The main reason is their safety: Their immune systems are highly vulnerable to germs other humans carry.

Anthropologist Beatriz Huertas, who works with Peru's agency for indigenous affairs, says the Mashco-Piro are becoming increasingly less isolated. The tribe is believed to number in the hundreds in several different clans.

It is not unusual for them to appear where they did during a season of sparse rainfall when rivers are low, and they tend to be itinerant, she said.

"What's strange is that they came so close to the population of Monte Salvado. It could be they are upset by problems of others taking advantage of resources in their territories and for that reason were demanding objects and food of the population," Huertas said.

Naturalists in the area and national park officials say the tribe's traditional hunting grounds have been affected by a rise in low-flying air traffic related to natural gas and oil exploration in the region.

Quicque said the Mashco-Piro were victimized by "genocide" in the mid-1980s from the incursion of loggers, and subsequently engaged in battles with mahogany-seekers.

Members of the group reappeared in May 2011 on the banks of a different river after more than two decades in voluntary isolation.

After those sightings, and after tourists left clothing for the Mashco-Piro, authorities barred all boats from going ashore in the area.

Mashco-Piro were blamed later in 2011 for the wounding of one forest ranger and the killing of a Matsiguenka Indian who had long maintained a relationship with them and provided them with machetes and cooking pots

Madonna Turns 55: 10 Former Flames We Won't Forget

On August 16, 2013 Madonna celebrates her 55th birthday. Over the years she has dominated the art of the shock - undergoing countless changes in both her style and personal aesthetic. Her legendary music career aside, Madge has also been known to shed her romantic relationships with the seasons as well. Here's an overview of some of the men who have rocked the Queen of Pop's wild world.
Madonna told Rolling Stone in 2009 of her infatuation with little M.J. when she was growing up. "I was madly in love with him, totally smitten…he was mind-bogglingly talented. The songs he sang were not childlike at all," she said. The two met for the first time in the early 80s, then put the press on major alert after a few hangouts they had shortly after. It's not clear how romantic the two became, but Madonna has let on that she and Jackson did have an interest in getting to know one another. "He wanted to work with me, I think he wanted to get to know me, and I wanted to do the same," she explained of her relationship with the pop icon, whom she described as "shy."

Madonna's whirlwind romance with the acclaimed screen star was a tabloid staple through the latter half of the '80s. They first crossed paths in 1985 and wed that same year. By 1987, they split before breaking it off for good with a divorce in 1989. The story's got a happy ending in some respect, however - Madge and Penn have remained close friends. Word on the street is that the sparks between them have never left. Actress Debi Mazar, Madonna's longtime confidante recently slipped to Bravo's Andy Cohen that Madonna sees Penn as the only "one true love" of her life. Madonna fans who spotted Penn in the front row of a live performance last October swore that he seemed smitten. Throughout the show, he was heard cheering "She's so hot!"

El Al Plane Makes Special Stop for Cancer Patient

Inbar Chomsky of Rehovot, Israel, planned to attend Camp Simcha in Glen Spey, New York for children who suffer from cancer and other hematologic illnesses. The camp program is offered by Chai Lifetime, a non-profit international organization.

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On August 8, all 36 children excitedly boarded the El Al flight for their two-week trip to the United States. After they underwent a pre-flight medical examination and were seated, the flight crew began collecting passports, while the plane prepared for takeoff. However, during the process, a flight attendant realized that Chomsky’s passport was missing.

The crew began frantically searching the aircraft but no one could find it. “It was pretty chaotic,” Rabbi Scholar, executive vice president of Chai Lifelime told Yahoo! Shine. “There is so much medical clearance that takes place before these kids are allowed to get on an international flight and to have this happen to a little girl who has already gone through so much was unfortunate.”

The search party expanded. The ground crew boarded the plane to help out and the airport staff scoured the area between the boarding gate and the plane. Passengers were getting restless, and with time running out, the pilot stepped out of the cockpit and informed Chomsky that without a passport, she wouldn’t be able to fly to New York. They called her mother to pick her up.

“Everyone was very emotional,” said Rabbi Scholar. “There wasn’t one person on that flight who wasn’t in tears or upset for this little girl. However, there was nothing that could be done.”

The plane had almost reached the runway when someone located Chomsky’s passport in the backpack of a fellow camper. Immediately, the pilot alerted the control tower, ground crew, and El Al’s offices to see if he could retrieve Chomsky. After 30 minutes of negotiations, the pilot turned the plane around and picked her up, to the cheers of the other passengers.

Although Yahoo! Shine could not reach an El Al spokesperson for comment, the airline sent a statement to the Times of Israel that read, “Planes rarely return to the gate after departing. The plane was on its way to the runway, when the passport was found on the plane. After consulting with El Al crew on the plane and El Al staff at the airport the decision was made and the plane returned to pick up Inbar. El Al was honored and proud to help Inbar’s dream to go to the camp in the USA come true. We wish Inbar full recovery and health.”

'80s Movie Babes Then and Now

Take a look back at smoldering screen sirens of the '80s, and see what they're up to today

The "Fast Times At Ridgemont High" scene of Phoebe Cates climbing out of a swimming pool in a red bikini first raised pulse rates among male viewers 31 years ago. The still-gorgeous Cates, who recently turned 50, has two kids with longtime hubby, actor Kevin Kline, and runs a boutique in New York City called the Blue Tree. When told by customers she looks like that actress Phoebe Cates, her standard answer is, "I get that a lot."

Daryl Hannah first caught the eyes of film fans as a "pleasure" replicant in "Blade Runner," then bared all in "Summer Lovers" before becoming a star as a mermaid in "Splash." These days, 52-year-old Hannah is still acting and has shown a taste for gritty and unglamorous roles in movies like "Vice" and "Blind Revenge." She also shoots hoops in the upcoming comedy "The Hot Flashes," and is a committed environmental activist.

Wedding Boasts 80 Bridesmaids. That’s a Whole Lot of Taffeta

Some brides skip having bridesmaids because they are so concerned about hurting their loved ones' feelings. Katie Dalby, 26, chose another route for her wedding to firefighter Norman Gooch on Saturday: She brought along 80 attendants. When Dalby, who owns Katie's Boogie Shoes Dance Academy in Harwich, England, told her students about her engagement over a year ago, she says they were superexcited and some were begging to be included in the wedding. "It just couldn't have been fair to choose two or three of them," Dalby told the Daily Mail. "So the only solution was to invite 74 of them-I didn't want to exclude anyone." She also asked her best friend, three sisters-in-law, a niece, and a cousin. "It made my day more special." —Sarah B. Weir, Shine Senior Writer.

While the wedding party was impressive, it wasn't a record breaker. That honor went to Jill Stapleton—also a dance teacher—whose 2010 wedding included 110 bridesmaids.

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