Mexico plans to test special drug courts in north, drawing praise from visiting US drug czar

September 14th, 2009 31 Mexican police arrested for alleged drug tiesMEXICO CITY — Thirty-one police officers have been arrested in a central Mexican state on suspicion of collaborating with a gang of drug cartel hit men. The Public Safety Department says the officers were arrested as part of a months-long investigation into alleged ties between police and the Zetas in Hidalgo, a state north of Mexico City.

September 9th, 2009 Journalists arrested for alleged drug gang payoffsVILLAHERMOSA, Mexico — Two rural journalists have been arrested for allegedly working as informants for a violent drug trafficking cartel, according to courts in the southern Mexico state of Tabasco. Newspaper correspondents Roberto Juarez and Lazaro Abreu Tejero Sanchez are being held on charges that they accepted thousands of dollars from the Zetas, a fierce drug gang aligned with the Gulf cartel, the state court system said in a news release.

August 10th, 2009 Obama says drug cartels violate human rightsGUADALAJARA, Mexico —President Barack Obama says drug cartels are the largest violators of human rights in Mexico and he has confidence Mexican President Felipe Calderon is cracking down without violating human rights. Obama on Monday, however, did not say whether his State Department would certify that Mexico is protecting human rights in its efforts to fight the drug traders.

August 5th, 2009 Mexico apologizes to Church after raid during MassMEXICO CITY — The Mexican government has apologized to Roman Catholic officials and parishioners after storming a church during Mass to arrest a drug suspect. But the Public Safety Department is standing by the decision to launch the raid, saying it was necessary to avoid a violent confrontation or escape.

July 30th, 2009 US 'wait-and-see' attitude on new Mexican drug lawMEXICO CITY — U.S. drug czar Gil Kerlikowske says he will adopt a "wait-and-see attitude" on a new Mexican drug law that many see as effectively decriminalizing the possession of small amounts of drugs including marijuana, cocaine and heroin.

July 15th, 2009 MEXICO CITY - Investigators have identified the 12 dead bodies found earlier Tuesday alongside a road in Mexico's western Michoacan state as federal police officers. Monte Alejandro Rubido, spokesman for the National Security Council, called the brutal killings a revenge attack by the drug cartel La Familia Michoacana.

July 9th, 2009 Drug czar says Jackson's death a wake-up call WASHINGTON — The government's drug czar says that Michael Jackson's death is a wake-up call to the nation about prescription drug abuse. Gil Kerlikowske (ker-li-/KOW-skee), chief of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, says more people are dying in the United States from drug overdoses than from gunshot wounds.

June 8th, 2009 Mexico captures drug cartel suspect wanted in USMEXICO CITY — Mexican police have captured a woman wanted in the United States for allegedly smuggling $2 million in cocaine-trafficking profits for a powerful drug cartel. The Attorney General's Office says Olga Lerma was arrested in western Jalisco state after police spent three months tracking her movements.

May 12th, 2009 Fox encouraged about US cooperation in drug warKENNESAW, Ga. — Former Mexican President Vicente Fox said Tuesday he is encouraged that the Obama administration accepts some U.S.

May 9th, 2009 Seattle police chief gets Senate nod as drug czarWASHINGTON — The Senate on Thursday approved the nomination of Seattle Police Chief Gil Kerlikowske as the nation's drug czar, signaling a change in U.S. drug policy.

May 8th, 2009 Senate approves Seattle police chief as drug czarWASHINGTON — The Senate has approved the nomination of Seattle Police Chief Gil Kerlikowske as the national drug czar. Kerlikowske, a 36-year law enforcement veteran, has said he will take a balanced, science-based approach to the job of director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy.

April 17th, 2009 MEXICO CITY - US President Barack Obama and Mexican President Felipe Calderon pledged Thursday to work together to combat escalating drug violence along the border. 'Both of our efforts have to be coordinated, both of our efforts have to be strengthened,' Obama said during his first visit to Mexico since taking office, before he heads to the Summit of the Americas in Trinidad and Tobago.

January 23rd, 2009 MEXICO CITY - The Mexican Army has arrested a drug suspect who claimed to have dissolved 300 corpses of other drug criminals with corrosive chemicals over the past 10 years. Santiago Meza Lopez, 45, confessed to having disposed of rivals for drug kingpin Teodoro Garcia Simental, the defence ministry said in a statement Friday.

January 16th, 2009 MEXICO CITY - Mexican authorities have ordered two former heads of Interpol Mexico to be sent to prison and await trial for their alleged nexus with the a powerful drug cartel, EFE news agency reported. According to the Attorney General's Office, Rodolfo de la Guardia Garcia and Ricardo Gutierrez Vargas were brought before a court in the northeastern Mexican state of Nayarit Thursday and later jailed pending their trial.

December 30th, 2008 MEXICO CITY - Mexico will introduce harsher punishments to take on the country's organised drug cartels as well as government officials having links with the underworld, officials said. The Secretariat of National Defence (SEDENA), responsible for the country's security, has proposed to increase prison term up to 60 years, for former or serving officers in the army and the police accused of links with the underworld.