Briton Receives Death Sentence

[English Noodles]

I realy can't believe that some people here are trying to defend the actions of these people.

They are guily as charged, and as such must face the consequences.

If you are trying to defend them with some stupid line such as "but they only had a little bit of dope" or "He pleaded guilty coz if he did not he would get the neadle" etc etc then you are just DUMB NAIEVE and exactly the type of people that these people rely on to get off the hook.

Wake up to reality, this is Asia, the laws on drugs are severe, and rightly so.

Just because these are farang it has come to your attention, Thai people recieve the same justice.

They deserve everything they recieve, if i did the same as them and got caght i would not expect any sympothy from anyone here so why give it to them.

They are people who wanted the good life without working, simple they were caught and now have to live the nightmare deserving of such people.

Plenty get away with it and few in comparison get caught, i hope more do get caught and maybe it is the person who gets caught next that would have given my daughter Heroine and destroyed her life. I hope so then that is good news to me.

Noodles.

[Flummoxed]

Let me be clear, I don't do drugs and I don't sanction the use BUT on the other hand I don't really see why anyone should limit anyone else's freedom to do to themselves what they want.

If you can't respect the law of the land for the country in which you are a guest, then don't go there, it's as simple as that. Save your 'Freedom' speech for your homeland.

I have absolutely no sympathy for these morons.

On the subject of innocents in jail, you will find a similar amount of innocents in prisons of places like the UK and America, victims of bent cops eager for an arrest, and a weak minded person signing a confession under undue pressure and interview technique.

However, I don't think these two clowns in this article are innocent.

[stroll]

Now here's the problem with legalization. Kids will have access to dangerous drugs as I had as a kid. They will do what I did... and get older kids to buy them for them. They will, or many of them will have no chance in life... they will become addicts as kids and die early, or suffer brain dammages... It happens NOW even when drugs are expensive. Kids still get hold of them.

I think Thailand has the right approach.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

As you say yourself, kids have access to drugs whether they are legal or not, so this is no argument against legalisation, it confirms that the criminal status stops neither demand nor supply. I'd say it could be an argument in favour of legalisation, wouldn't it be better for consumers to be able to obtain standardized quality stuff, packaged in a way which would minimise accidental overdosing?

Do you think shooting or long term imprisoning these 'kids' is the "right approach"? I am disappointed, since I value you as one of the more impartial, sensible posters on other subjects in which people tend to reply with biased emotional charge.

BTW, if it hasn't changed recently, the law indicates which amount of drugs corresponds to which gravity of offence: up to 10 gr heroin=possession, <100 gr = dealing, intend to sell, 100 gr up=trafficking. Amphetamine tabs: <10 pcs=possession, <100 pcs=dealing, intend to sell, more than 100 pcs=trafficking.

So the guy with the death sentence is a trafficker, whether he had 1.5kg or 1.5 onz, the other one a dealer, by legal definition.

The punishment seems harsh, without knowing the full story, I know Thais with previous record convicted for dealing who had 2-3 years imprisonment for larger amounts (amphetamines).

[English Noodles]

Now here's the problem with legalization. Kids will have access to dangerous drugs as I had as a kid. They will do what I did... and get older kids to buy them for them. They will, or many of them will have no chance in life... they will become addicts as kids and die early, or suffer brain dammages... It happens NOW even when drugs are expensive. Kids still get hold of them.

I think Thailand has the right approach.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

As you say yourself, kids have access to drugs whether they are legal or not, so this is no argument against legalisation, it confirms that the criminal status stops neither demand nor supply. I'd say it could be an argument in favour of legalisation, wouldn't it be better for consumers to be able to obtain standardized quality stuff, packaged in a way which would minimise accidental overdosing?

Do you think shooting or long term imprisoning these 'kids' is the "right approach"? I am disappointed, since I value you as one of the more impartial, sensible posters on other subjects in which people tend to reply with biased emotional charge.

BTW, if it hasn't changed recently, the law indicates which amount of drugs corresponds to which gravity of offence: up to 10 gr heroin=possession, <100 gr = dealing, intend to sell, 100 gr up=trafficking. Amphetamine tabs: <10 pcs=possession, <100 pcs=dealing, intend to sell, more than 100 pcs=trafficking.

So the guy with the death sentence is a trafficker, whether he had 1.5kg or 1.5 onz, the other one a dealer, by legal definition.

The punishment seems harsh, without knowing the full story, I know Thais with previous record convicted for dealing who had 2-3 years imprisonment for larger amounts (amphetamines).

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

It's a shame you think this way Stroll as after reading your other posts i had credited you with more inteligence than this.

To condone these peoples acts is just pathetic to say the least, Then to go on to say that the law of the land where these people committed the offence is being overly dramatic is an absolute insulte to the good people of th Kingdome of Thailand of which i know you dearly love and respect.

Noodles.

[cojones]

In the past the King has given clemency to farang drug dealers and they get off lightly or go home to do the time . so it has undermined the deterent unfortunately .

[snoophound]

Well ya gotta wonder whats in these dickheads skulls instead of brains.

One of them lived on Samui so obviously knew the rules and risks.

Now he has swapped the idyllic life on samui for bang kwann.

no sympathy

[Flummoxed]

Life in a Thai Jail... can'y be much worse than Blaby

[fw1]

I'm inclined to agree with Loong Dave and Flummoxed, among others. Having first come to Thailand over four years ago, I have also been flummoxed by the constant stream of foriegners entering thailand, and thinking that they can do whatever they want. A lot of people seem to equate Thailand with freedom and the finding of it, thinking that they can then do whatever they want, forgetting that, like all countries, Thailand -like we know- has laws too. If you break them, you run the risk of being caught. If you punch a policeman (or ex-policeman) in the face, you run the risk of him getting his own back, as you would in any country (not a good idea in a country where the police carry guns). If you are caught smuggling drugs, you run the risk of imprisonment, same as you would anywhere else.

Personally, I blame all those crappy films like The Beach for putting into people's heads that they can do whatever they want here. Though ultimately the responsibility lies with the individuals themselves. Had either of them read The Damage Done, I'm sure they would have had second thoughts.

Like others, I have no sympathy for them.

[Steely Dan]

I think there is far less of a drug problem in countries with the death penalty than countries will probation or community services. Maybe killing them is not the answer that most people would like... Perhaps a prison with all the drugs the world has to offer, and freely distributed... could even have different wings... Heroin Wing, Cocaine Wing, Tobacco Wing...

Somewhere there must be an answer?

I think you should have a re-think on this one; Holland has decriminalised soft drugs for decades and provides ecstacy purity testing facilities in nightclubs and yet Holland has a far lower incidence of drug addiction than many Countries with stricter laws. The only downside is a degree of drug tourism in Amsterdam.

[English Noodles]

In the past the King has given clemency to farang drug dealers and they get off lightly or go home to do the time . so it has undermined the deterent unfortunately .

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Although condemned drug traffickers can appeal for clemency, their conviction should help deter people from entering the drug trade. People should be made to realise they put their lives on the line by selling drugs.

We must realise that drugs are a threat to the country. In Malaysia and Singapore, drug traffickers are dealt with harshly. The death penalty is in place and it serves to deter potential drug traffickers.

Drug suppression agencies should do what is necessary to help the drug problem. But, at the same time, they must ensure that innocent are not wrongly imprisoned, i don't believe these people were innocent in this case.

Noodles.

[snoophound]

cant wait to see the pics of these guys

anyone want to lay bets?....shaved heads,lots of tattoos etc etc.

Like previous posters said its widely known the penalty in most SE asian countries and the police love to divert the media to farangs rather than their own problems.

Stupidity,arrogance or both.....any moron can push drugs in our world and make a small living and get away with it,even if they get caught its only 5 yrs.

[system7]

Everybody have obviously made up their decision already.

What if these guys are innocent? Do you believe the Thai judicial system is that good that you would be prepared to risk someones life on it? 

Stop for a second and think about it logically, would anyone be stupid enough to risk his life for 1.whatever ounce of whatever drug it was?

There is a proverb that if something sounds too good to be true it usually is.

I think the opposite applies as well, nobody can be so stupid. I am more inclined to believe that someone wanted one or two of these guys put away and make sure whatever was needed to do the job was found on their person/premise.

Scary IMO!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

One pleaded guilty....must be stupid eh ???

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

[sonthaya]

Send them to the " Bangkok Hilton" and let them spend the rest of their days there, if they were stupid and cruel enough to get in to the drug to trade, they deserve what they get.

[system7]

well another one bites the dust.. cant they get a high off being on holiday and enjoying all about thailand? serves em right the greedy dumb ass basterds...

[dtoodnut]

I watched as the yahbah turned sweet pooyings into wired power drinkers, and I feel very sad when I see some cute lass that is drunk and wired. The smack is also used to take the edge off the meth high and I fear that that these sweet lasses and prettiest girls in the world will be junkies next. All that adding to an increase in HIV cases. Any farhang that adds to the drug epidemic in The Land of Smiles should be executed. I'd take execution over a life of misery anyway.

Screw these guys.

[stroll]

Ravisher:

You indicate you have an issue with addiction, in form of 'smoking'. The argument for for the need to protect citizens against addictive substances is one I respect, but how far is it considered legitimate to go with regulating laws? For alcohol and tobbacco, age limit for purchasing, licensing hours and taxation are regarded as reasonable measures.

On this basis I cannot agree to the measures regarding other substances.

Do any of you anti-drugs people complain that there is no booze available on certain airlines, or find the alcohol ban in Muslim countries unreasonable? This to me would indicate an uninformed opinion at best.

It's a shame you think this way Stroll as after reading your other posts i had credited you with more inteligence than this.

To condone these peoples acts is just pathetic to say the least, Then to go on to say that the law of the land where these people committed the offence is being overly dramatic is an absolute insulte to the good people of th Kingdome of Thailand of which i know you dearly love and respect.

Noodles.

I replied to an argument from Ravisher, and pointed out that if you accept that some people, including curious kids, are going to take drugs, whether they are legal or not, and are concerned for them, then there are better ways to protect them than shooting or incarcerating them. Please do not misunderstand me for condoning 'these peoples acts', I prefer to look at the issues at hand in more detail, and wholesale condemnation does not help this.

I do think the punishment in Thailand is overly heavyhanded, and not enough informed efforts are made to adress the issue of illegal drugs and addiction.

[surfercaesar]

Silly boys. But the amounts seem quite small, no?

This is a warning that for even a small amount of drugs the penalties are harsh.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Blake read the original post when they got arrested,One of them was carrying nearly 3lbs of H, :blink:And he pleaded not guilty

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

You do the crime, you do the time

[valleyman]

In response to Bubblebuster about the 'heavy-handed' Thai laws, these laws are widely known and are, and should be, a deterrent. There seems to be an 'attitude' (arrogance) that if a farang commits a crime he/she should have special dispensation that he would not receive back home, this despite the fact that many farang make this country their home. While I agree it is necessary for the UK Embassy to represent the interests of its citizens who have been unjustly held, in the case of heinous crimes such as drug trafficking local justice should be allowed to take ite prescribed course.

[stroll]

I pointed out in an earlier post, that the punishment for the Brits seem much heavier than have been for Thais with similar offences.

While it would be foolish to ignore the law in Thailand, or elsewhere, I claim the right to disagree with such laws, and also to query why the punishment for (apparently)comparable offences is so different in this case.

I wonder where your hostility comes from, have you misunderstood something I posted, or does it originate in me having a different opinion from yours?

[wrksysact]

Thailand has to be seen to "doing its bit" against the drug trafickers.

In the reality we all know marijuana and heroin and yabba and god knows else what is shifting out of the country by the tonnage. God the amount of Thai Stick in Amsterdam last week...it was everywhere...all of this happens with the Governments knowledge and who knows how many millions of $$$ are going into the hands of officilas.

Its just the small fry who get burnt...nothing more than a second rate publicity stunt by the authorities.

Looks good, achieves nothing.

Edited November 11, 2004 by penzman

[Phil Conners]

Legalize drugs!!! Oh yeah... great idea... NOT.

I am one of those people who are easily 'addicted' something to do with a lack of receptors in the brain that trigger dopamine into the system. There are millions of people like me... I am hooked on nicotine. I cannot stop. I have tried every way known to man, including hypnosis and therapy. I am not a stupid person, my IQ is 142 and still I cannot stop smoking. I am now 60 had a quadruple bypass at 48 and still smoking 30 cigarettes per day. It is killing me and nothing I can do about it. Along with heart disease, I have emphasima (spelling?) and lung damage from TB.

Now here's the problem with legalization. Kids will have access to dangerous drugs as I had as a kid. They will do what I did... and get older kids to buy them for them. They will, or many of them will have no chance in life... they will become addicts as kids and die early, or suffer brain dammages... It happens NOW even when drugs are expensive. Kids still get hold of them.

I think Thailand has the right approach.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

My heart bleeds for you .. not. Your addiction problems are yours. I don't see why me or my family's life should eb endangered by some drug crazed bozo who think I am going to finance his habit. Sorry. Let those who want to kill themselves do so and leave innocent people alone.

[p1p]

Now here's the problem with legalization. Kids will have access to dangerous drugs as I had as a kid. They will do what I did... and get older kids to buy them for them. They will, or many of them will have no chance in life... they will become addicts as kids and die early, or suffer brain dammages... It happens NOW even when drugs are expensive. Kids still get hold of them.

I think Thailand has the right approach.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

As you say yourself, kids have access to drugs whether they are legal or not, so this is no argument against legalisation, it confirms that the criminal status stops neither demand nor supply. I'd say it could be an argument in favour of legalisation, wouldn't it be better for consumers to be able to obtain standardized quality stuff, packaged in a way which would minimise accidental overdosing?

Do you think shooting or long term imprisoning these 'kids' is the "right approach"? I am disappointed, since I value you as one of the more impartial, sensible posters on other subjects in which people tend to reply with biased emotional charge.

BTW, if it hasn't changed recently, the law indicates which amount of drugs corresponds to which gravity of offence: up to 10 gr heroin=possession, <100 gr = dealing, intend to sell, 100 gr up=trafficking. Amphetamine tabs: <10 pcs=possession, <100 pcs=dealing, intend to sell, more than 100 pcs=trafficking.

So the guy with the death sentence is a trafficker, whether he had 1.5kg or 1.5 onz, the other one a dealer, by legal definition.

The punishment seems harsh, without knowing the full story, I know Thais with previous record convicted for dealing who had 2-3 years imprisonment for larger amounts (amphetamines).

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

It's a shame you think this way Stroll as after reading your other posts i had credited you with more inteligence than this.

To condone these peoples acts is just pathetic to say the least, Then to go on to say that the law of the land where these people committed the offence is being overly dramatic is an absolute insulte to the good people of th Kingdome of Thailand of which i know you dearly love and respect.

Noodles.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

The whole point of legalising, or at the very least, decriminalising the USE of drugs is to control the problem. Dealing, trafficking etc, will and ought always to remain illegal.

When drug use is legalised, it is possible to set up clinics which supply registered users/addicts with guaranteed quality, control doses of their drug(s) of choice to be consumed on the premises only. These can and should be supplied at minimal cost, or preferably free, to the user as immense savings will be made elsewhere in society.

If the main body of users are removed from the illegal supply network in this manner, as they have their free supply through legal channels, the automatic result is that the illegal market will find the cost/benefit graph moves far into the “not-worth-it” area. Their high risk, high cost goods will be competing in a market with a better quality, free product. They could never compete and the market would eventually inevitably disappear.

[wilko]

One pleaded guilty....must be stupid eh ???

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I'm sure you are aware that if you insist you are innocent you are killed.

If you plead guilty you are spared.

And you still have to suggest that pleading guilty actually means anything?

Let me be clear, I don't do drugs and I don't sanction the use BUT on the other hand I don't really see why anyone should limit anyone else's freedom to do to themselves what they want.

If drugs were legalized there would be no profit in dealing and hence no incentive to make anyone else addicted. Furthermore, those who were addicted could go to the pharmacy or wherever and get their drugs without having to resort to a life of crime to support the habit.

Logically it would seem that someone with the power to make decisions has an interest in keeping this a profitable market.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Legalize drugs!!! Oh yeah... great idea... NOT.

I am one of those people who are easily 'addicted' something to do with a lack of receptors in the brain that trigger dopamine into the system. There are millions of people like me... I am hooked on nicotine. I cannot stop. I have tried every way known to man, including hypnosis and therapy. I am not a stupid person, my IQ is 142 and still I cannot stop smoking. I am now 60 had a quadruple bypass at 48 and still smoking 30 cigarettes per day. It is killing me and nothing I can do about it. Along with heart disease, I have emphasima (spelling?) and lung damage from TB.

Now here's the problem with legalization. Kids will have access to dangerous drugs as I had as a kid. They will do what I did... and get older kids to buy them for them. They will, or many of them will have no chance in life... they will become addicts as kids and die early, or suffer brain dammages... It happens NOW even when drugs are expensive. Kids still get hold of them.

I think Thailand has the right approach.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

It would seem that an IQ of 140+ does not protect one from stupidity then...

[Bonkers]

Good-oh. Thrilled to learn that there's one less farang scum-bag roaming Thailand. It's always a source of amazement to me that they think they can get away with it. Did they leave their brains behind somewhere or are they just blatantly stupid?

[English Noodles]

What happened to Andrew Potter? He was the other guy involved, was he cleared as i dont think he was actualy caught with any drugs in his possesion though he was arrested at the time.

http://www.thaivisa.com/index.php?514&back...rce&tt_news=285

[Doctor John]

[DaveYo]

Well, bottom line is this folks. If you think you can control dope, dope is going to control you. And that ends with a period too. As for the guy getting the death sentence, well if I was him I would now be thinking of just two things, one of them is need to survive, and the other is get the ###### out of Thailand never to return. I would do my darnest if I was in that position. For me I don't want some other human being telling me what, date, when, how I am going to die. It is not their place.

Instead of Death penalty, why not do the persona non grata, and kick him out permanently and notify all other countries if he leaves Briton to send his tushie back to his country on a zippo turn around "meaning to reject his generous visit pronto".

This way he remains in Britain for the rest of his life never to see the world in person ever again. That alone will be most painful if one loves to travel.

Daveyo

Just simply my two cents worth.

[Mali_in_CM]

It's comforting to know that as of last December, Thailand is 100% drug-free, thanks to the PM.

Not all so comforting to recall the the Thai cop who shot somebody dead in front of a dozen witnesses, got off free.

[Dickie]

It would seem that an IQ of 140+ does not protect one from stupidity then...

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

True, mine's 155 and I can be a right ######.

[Merlin]

Current DJ : Radio Bangkok

Current Song : Bob Dylan - Everybody Must Get Stoned

well, I thought is was funny, anyway...