Crime

A new Justice Department policy on medical marijuana could lead to the drug becoming a regular source of tax revenue in states where it's legal. Jeff Tyler reports.

The Securities Investor Protection Corporation or SIPC has charged a flat $150 annual fee to protect investors. But in order to honor all Madoff claims, the firm has to up its fee quite heavily. Amanda Aronczyk reports.

Several states are weighing whether to abolish the death penalty in favor of a life sentence without parole to save on expenses. John Dimsdale calculates how much states would save and where justice may factor in.

Despite its reputation as the love drug, ecstasy has a violent back story. Host Kai Ryssdal talks with "Chemical Cowboys" author Lisa Sweetingham about the investigations that ended an ecstasy empire.

Disgraced investor Bernard Madoff pleaded guilty to masterminding a $50 billion Ponzi scheme, the largest in history. So where did all that money go? Bob Moon reports.

A Pew Center report shows that one of the fastest-growing spending areas for states is criminal correction. But as states struggle with their budgets, is the price of spending on the penitentiary system worth it? Rico Gagliano reports.

New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo has subpoenaed Bank of America CEO Kenneth Lewis on an investigation into whether the bank misled investors about bonuses and losses at Merrill Lynch. Janet Babin reports.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has frozen the assets of businessman R. Allen Stanford, who is accused of an $8 billion fraud. Aside from the deep financial wound, investor confidence has also been hit. Dan Grech reports.

A new U.S. law in effect today says child products can't contain more than one-tenth of 1 percent phthalates, a plastic-softening chemical. Congress passed it after last year's recalls of Chinese-made toys. Mitchell Hartman reports.

Investment adviser Gordon Grigg is accused of bilking clients out of millions. Some of that money came by using part of the TARP fund as a lure. Ashley Milne-Tyte reports how Grigg turned government into a marketing tool.