Blow is a 2001 American biographical crime drama film directed by Ted Demme, about an American cocaine kingpin and his international network. David McKenna and Nick Cassavetes adapted Bruce Porter's 1993 book Blow: How a Small Town Boy Made $100 Million with the Medellín Cocaine Cartel and Lost It All for the screenplay. It is based on the real-life stories of U.S. drug trafficker George Jung and his connections including narcotics kings Pablo Escobar and Carlos Lehder Rivas, and the Medellín Cartel.
Showdown in Little Tokyo is a 1991 American buddy cop action film directed by Mark L. Lester and starring Dolph Lundgren and Brandon Lee; it was the latter's first American film role. The film was released in the United States on August 23, 1991. It gained a cult following among action fans especially for the chemistry between Lundgren and Lee.
Bad Boys is a 1995 American action comedy film directed by Michael Bay in his feature directorial debut and produced by Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer. The film stars Martin Lawrence and Will Smith as Marcus Burnett and Mike Lowrey, two Miami narcotics detectives who are investigating $100 million worth of stolen packs of heroin and must also protect a woman from an international drug dealer after she witnessed a key murder.
Super Troopers is a 2001 American comedy film directed by Jay Chandrasekhar and written by and starring the Broken Lizard comedy group. Marisa Coughlan, Daniel von Bargen and Brian Cox co-star while Lynda Carter has a cameo appearance. In total, Fox Searchlight paid $3.25 million for distribution rights of the film and it grossed $23 million at the box office.
Avon Randolph Barksdale is a fictional character in the American television series The Wire, played by Wood Harris. Barksdale is one of the most powerful drug dealers in Baltimore, Maryland, and runs the Barksdale Organization. Stringer Bell, his second in command, insulates Barksdale from law enforcement and potential enemies. Working for Barksdale and Bell is a large organization of drug dealers and enforcers.
The Super Cops is a 1974 action adventure film directed by Gordon Parks and starring Ron Leibman and David Selby. The film is based on the book The Super Cops: The True Story of the Cops Called Batman and Robin by L. H. Whittemore. The film was released a few months after the successful cop movie Serpico.
Roland "Wee-Bey" Brice is a fictional character in the HBO drama The Wire played by Hassan Johnson. Wee-Bey is a trusted soldier and third in charge of the Barksdale Organization.
She Shoulda Said 'No'! is a 1949 exploitation film that follows in the spirit of morality tales such as the 1936 films Reefer Madness and Marihuana. Directed by Sam Newfield and starring Lila Leeds, it was originally produced to capitalize on the arrest of Leeds and Robert Mitchum on a charge of marijuana conspiracy.
Kathryn Johnston was an elderly woman from Atlanta, Georgia who was killed by undercover police officers in her home on Neal Street in northwest Atlanta on November 21, 2006, where she had lived for 17 years. Three officers had entered her home in what was later described as a 'botched' drug raid. Officers cut off burglar bars and broke down her door using a no-knock warrant. Police said Johnston fired at them and they fired in response; she fired one shot out the door over the officers' heads and they fired 39 shots, five or six of which hit her. None of the officers were injured by her gunfire, but Johnston was killed by the officers. Police injuries were later attributed to friendly fire from each other's weapons.
Angelo Salvatore Ruggiero Sr., also known as "Quack Quack", was an American gangster. He was a member of the Gambino crime family and a friend of John Gotti's. After Gotti became leader of the family he made Ruggiero a caporegime.
Kevin Weeks is an American former mobster and longtime friend and mob lieutenant to Whitey Bulger, the infamous boss of the Winter Hill Gang, a crime family based in the Winter Hill neighborhood of Somerville, Massachusetts.
Banged Up Abroad is a British documentary/docudrama television series created by Bart Layton that was produced for Channel 5 and that premiered in March 2006. Most episodes feature stories of people who have been arrested while travelling abroad, usually for trying to smuggle illegal drugs, although some episodes feature people who were either kidnapped or captured while they were either travelling or living in other countries. Some episodes have featured real-life stories that first became well known when they were made the subject of a film: films that have been 're-made' in this way include Midnight Express, Goodfellas, The Devil's Double, Argo, Mr Nice and, to a lesser extent, Casino. A few episodes have focused on undercover infiltrations of criminal syndicates by law enforcement agents or individuals recruited by them.
Barry Cooper is an American drug reform activist, YouTuber and filmmaker. Formerly a police officer in Texas, Cooper is best known for KopBusters, a series of online videos in which he attempts to document police misconduct, and Never Get Busted Again, a series of videos aimed at teaching citizens how to evade false arrest by the police. Cooper also has a popular YouTube channel, "Never Get Busted", in which he offers advice on avoiding drug-related legal issues, drawing on his experiences in law enforcement to educate viewers about their rights and the intricacies of drug laws.
Nasty Boys is an American action drama television series based on the real life Narcotics Officers of the North Las Vegas Police Department. It follows the 1989 film Nasty Boys and aired on NBC from February 19 to May 18, 1990.
Savages is a 2012 American action thriller film directed by Oliver Stone. It is based on Don Winslow's novel of the same name. The screenplay was written by Stone, Winslow, and Shane Salerno. It stars Taylor Kitsch, Blake Lively, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Benicio del Toro, Demián Bichir, Salma Hayek, Emile Hirsch and John Travolta. The film follows two marijuana growers, Chon, an ex-Navy SEAL, and Ben, who are best friends, as they confront the Mexican drug cartel that kidnapped their shared girlfriend.
In 1969, the American rock musician Jimi Hendrix, then at the height of his career, was arrested, tried, and acquitted in Canada for drug possession. On May 3, 1969, customs agents at Toronto International Airport detained Hendrix after finding a small amount of what they suspected to be heroin and hashish in his luggage. Four hours later, after a mobile lab confirmed what had been found, he was formally charged with drug possession. Released on $10,000 bail, Hendrix was required to return on May 5 for an arraignment hearing. During a performance at Maple Leaf Gardens later that night, he displayed a jovial attitude, joking with the audience and singing a few lines of mock opera for comedic effect.
Special Task Force On Organised Crime (STAFOC) (Malay: Pasukan Tugas Khas Melawan Jenayah Terancang) was the specialized operation armed response units of the Royal Malaysia Police.
Cannabis in Cambodia is illegal. This prohibition is enforced opportunistically. Many "Happy" restaurants located in Phnom Penh, Siem Reap and Sihanoukville publicly offer food cooked with marijuana, or as a side garnish.
Around 4:00am on August 23, 1987, the bodies of 16-year-old Don Henry and 17-year-old Kevin Ives were hit by a freight train in the town of Alexander, Arkansas, United States, as they were lying on the tracks. The locomotive engineer engaged the brakes while blowing the horn, but the train could not stop in time and rolled over the bodies. A second autopsy revealed that Don Henry had been stabbed in the back and Kevin Ives' skull may have been crushed prior to being run over.
In February 1967, two members of the Rolling Stones, the lead singer Mick Jagger and the guitarist Keith Richards, were arrested at Richards' home, Redlands, West Wittering, Sussex for drug possession. The raid had been preceded by a major campaign by the tabloid newspaper the News of the World, which Jagger was suing for libel at the time, and which carried lurid stories regarding Jagger and his girlfriend, Marianne Faithfull. Although convicted—and having spent a night in prison—a publicity campaign by their colleagues in the music industry encouraged popular support and criticism of the decision to prosecute them. Most notably, the traditionally conservative newspaper The Times published an op-ed by William Rees-Mogg asking Who Breaks a Butterfly on a Wheel?, in which he criticised the prosecutions as unfounded and unnecessary.
