girlfriend of actor Michael Douglas' wayward son was freed Tuesday after spending seven months in jail for becoming embroiled in Cameron Douglas' downward spiral with drugs.

A judge in federal court in Manhattan sentenced Kelly Sott to time served for misdemeanor drug possession. She had pleaded guilty last month."I learned a good lesson," Sott told the judge. "I just want to leave all that behind me — the drugs. ... Thank you for giving me a second chance."Sott's lawyer said her time behind bars had given her a chance to kick a drug habit she picked up amid her distress over losing two friends in the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks. As part of her sentence, the judge ordered her to undergo drug treatment and counseling for a year after she returns to her home in Pennsylvania.Federal agents arrested Sott last summer after she was caught trying smuggle heroin to Cameron Douglas — an admitted drug addict and dealer who was under house arrest at the time — inside an electric toothbrush.
The son of the Academy Award winner was arrested July 28, 2009, at the trendy Hotel Gansevoort as part of a Drug Enforcement Administration investigation.Investigators say Douglas was paid tens of thousands of dollars for trafficking large amounts of methamphetamine — what he referred to in intercepted phone calls as "pastry" or "bath salts." Cash and drugs were routinely exchanged from coast to coast through shippers like FedEx, the court papers said.
He pleaded guilty in January to conspiracy to distribute drugs as part of a deal requiring to cooperate with an investigation of meth suppliers. He also pleaded guilty to heroin possession — a charges stemming from the toothbrush incident.Cameron Douglas has acted in movies including 2003's "It Runs in the Family," starring his father and grandfather Kirk Douglas.

actor Corey Haim died from an apparent accidental drug overdose

Haim, 38, was taken from his mother's North Hollywood home by ambulance to Burbank's Providence St. Joseph Medical Center, according to police Sgt. Frank Albarran.

He was pronounced dead at 2:15 a.m. PT, Ed Winter, the assistant chief of the L.A. County Department of Coroner, said.

"He got out of bed about 1:30 this morning, was a little unsteady on his feet," Winter said. Haim's mother then called the paramedics.

Haim's mother said her son had been suffering from "flu-like symptoms," Winter said, adding that four prescription pill

Britons are snorting 30 tonnes of cocaine a year and consider the drug to be a socially acceptable part of a night out

Britons are snorting 30 tonnes of cocaine a year and consider the drug to be a socially acceptable part of a night out, a House of Commons report lamented last week. The Home Affairs Select Committee accused law enforcement agencies of intercepting too few shipments and of arresting too few people, allowing the price of the class A drug to fall to as little as £2 a line.But there is a part of the world which is not getting away with cocaine and is not inclined to consider it glamorous, socially acceptable or normal. It is called Latin America, where the coca leaf is grown, turned into paste and powder, and trafficked. And here is where narco-related violence and corruption is exacting a terrible price.Last week brought fresh horrors. In Mexico, authorities found the dismembered body of a journalist, Rodolfo Rincon Taracena, who disappeared in 2007. His articles on the drug trade had prompted his brutal murder. More than 16,000 people have died in Mexico since President Felipe Calderón declared war on drug cartels in December 2006.

In Guatemala, the national police chief, Baltazar Gonzalez, and anti-drug czar, Nelly Bonilla, were detained in a case of stolen cocaine that led to the deaths of five police agents. In a tale too bloody for The Wire, it seems that the agents were killed while trying to steal a stash from members of the Zetas, a group of hit men linked to Mexico's powerful Gulf cartel.

There was more grim news from the US International Narcotics Control strategy report, which said that traffickers were annually sending $8bn to $25bn from the United States, expanding production in Bolivia and finding new routes through Venezuela.

Peru's Shining Path insurgency, once almost extinct, has revived in recent months: the guerrillas have learned from Colombia's Farc how to use cocaine revenue to perpetuate a conflict.

Calls for decriminalisation are growing; former presidents from Brazil, Colombia and Mexico have swelled the chorus. Latin America can only hope that Europe and the US, the main markets, will one day figure out a way to curb demand.

37-year-old councillor was interviewed by officers from an elite drug and organised crime squad last year, in a private meeting in his office at the City Chambers.

37-year-old councillor was interviewed by officers from an elite drug and organised crime squad last year, in a private meeting in his office at the City Chambers.It is understood officers from the Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency (SCDEA) were concerned that he could be in a position where his influence as the head of the country's biggest local authority might be exploited. The latest dramatic revelations about the case came as Purcell quit the country yesterday, with some sources saying he may be away from the country for a year. He is understood to have flown to Australia, for a period of "rest and recuperation."Purcell unexpectedly quit as council leader last Tuesday and it subsequently emerged that the council had prepared a statement linking his decision to a "chemical dependency".
Last night, there were calls for reassurances from the council that crucial decisions made by Purcell over the last few months had not been affected.On 12 May last year, Purcell held a "private meeting" in his office in City Chambers with SCDEA officers. The unit was set up specifically to probe cases of organised crime and major drug dealing. It is understood that Purcell's own activities were not the focus of the police enquiries. Rather they were concerned that, as the head of the council, he should not leave himself exposed to criminal gangs in the city.
Shortly after the interview, Purcell moved flat, leaving the district of Yoker, where he had lived for most of his life, as part of a symbolic attempt to "start afresh".
The fresh details come after Purcell mysteriously announced his resignation as leader of the council last week.It then emerged he had been admitted to the Castle Craig clinic in the Borders, which specialises in the treatment of drug and drink problems.Scotland on Sunday's sister paper, The Scotsman, then revealed that, under an initial plan laid out by council chiefs, it was to have been announced that Purcell had been suffering from a "chemical dependency".
Scotland on Sunday can reveal that lawyers for Purcell asked Glasgow City Council to make a statement declaring that there had never been a draft statement with the words "chemical dependency". However, the council refused to do so.
A spokesman for the council said last night: "He (Purcell's lawyer] asked us to make a statement confirming these things and we got back to him saying we would not make such a statement."Purcell has now quit politics altogether, bringing to an end a 15-year career at the local authority.
A spokesman for the former leader said last night: "Mr Purcell has departed the politics of Glasgow. He is now resting and recovering. He doesn't wish to comment further at this stage."
Yesterday, union chiefs said that there were now question marks over the decisions that the former leader had taken.
Martin Doran, leader of the council's GMB branch, and a personal friend of Purcell's, said: "There are now deep concerns and anxiety that he was making decisions impacting upon thousands of employees."SNP group leader Billy McAllister added: "I think we should go back and look at the decisions that he made. It is very important that we find out if there are any lessons to be learned."However, council officials insist that Purcell's problems had never impacted on the smooth running of the council.