DrugSense FOCUS Alert #151 December 28. 1999 Drug Bust "Mistake" Costs Another Life MAKE WRITING ONE LETTER A WEEK YOUR NEWS YEARS RESOLUTION!!! TO SUBSCRIBE, UNSUBSCRIBE, DONATE, VOLUNTEER TO HELP OR UPDATE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS PLEASE SEE THE INFORMATION AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS FOCUS ALERT PLEASE COPY AND DISTRIBUTE DrugSense FOCUS Alert #151 December 28. 1999 Colorado resident Ismael Mena was killed in September by police who burst into his home looking for drugs. In the aftermath of the all too familiar tragedy, no drugs were found in the house. Colorado newspapers finally focused some attention on the story this month, but few reporters have put the incident into its proper perspective like Denver Post columnist Ed Quillen. In an excellent column (reprinted below) Quillen demonstrates why Mena's death was the result of dangerous policy, not a simple "mistake." For more details on the killing of Mena, see http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99/n1375/a05.html?34592 Quillen also notes that if more politicians were as brave and honest as New Mexico Governor Gary Johnson, then maybe the madness of drug prohibition would end. Unfortunately, some recent reports indicate that Gov. Johnson is becoming frustrated by his opponents' refusal to accept the most basic facts about the failure of the drug war (see http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n1385.a07.html). Professional drug warriors cannot put a positive spin on Ismael Mena's death, nor can they manipulate any "facts" to justify it. Please write a letter to the Denver Post to thank Quillen for his insights and to notify editors that the only way to prevent another tragic death like Mena's is to end the drug war. Please also consider sending an email or letter to Gov. Johnson to encourage him to continue his battle even if the drug warriors never learn how to participate in a fair fight. Thanks for your effort and support. WRITE A LETTER TODAY It's not what others do it's what YOU do PLEASE SEND US A COPY OF YOUR LETTER OR TELL US WHAT YOU DID (Letter, Phone, fax etc.) Please post a copy your letter or report your action to the sent letter list () if you are subscribed, or by E-mailing a copy directly to Your letter will then be forwarded to the list with so others can learn from your efforts and be motivated to follow suit This is VERY IMPORTANT as it is the only way we have of gauging our impact and effectiveness. CONTACT INFO Source: Denver Post (CO) Contact: EXTRA CREDIT - Please send a message of encouragement to New Mexico Governor Gary Johnson to thank him for all he's done so far, but also to remind him that he must keep up the fight to stop the killing of innocent people like Mena. Contact information for the governor is available at http://164.64.43.1/opinion/Opinion.htm Pubdate: Sun, 26 Dec 1999 Source: Denver Post (CO) Copyright: 1999 The Denver Post Contact: Address: 1560 Broadway, Denver, CO 80202 Fax: (303) 820.1502 Website: http://www.denverpost.com/ Forum: http://www.denverpost.com/voice/voice.htm Author: Ed Quillen, Denver Post columnist Note: Ed Quillen of Salida is a former newspaper editor whose column appears Tuesdays and Sundays. NEW MEXICO'S RAY OF SUNSHINE AMID THE USUAL GLOOM Dec. 26 - Let us suppose that a gang of drug dealers had broken into a house, surprised an occupant who tried to defend himself, and then shot him dead. There would be an outcry that the death penalty wasn't nearly harsh enough for such scum. But when the police do it, it's just an accident - some of that unavoidable collateral damage in the all-important War on Drugs - and if there's any outcry, it hasn't been loud enough to notice. Nobody's marching in the street. Last September, Denver police served a "no-knock'' warrant at the home of Ismael Mena, who ended up dead by police bullets. Many have noted that no drugs were found in the house, as if that would have been an excuse for killing Mena. Start with the rationale for a "no-knock'' warrant. The theory is that if the police act in a polite and civil way, and ring the door bell and announce their presence, then the miscreants inside might flush the drugs down the toilet before answering the door. Since the excuse for much enforcement is "to get the drugs off the street,'' it would seem that a "yes-knock'' warrant would serve that purpose just as well. Drugs in the sewer certainly aren't on the street. Then there's the matter of the police going to the wrong address. I saw that once, and then heard the cop call me a liar. It happened in early 1974, when I was in college in Greeley. Among my other duties at the campus paper was covering the police department, and we had a decent working relationship. A friend, Tom Hopkins, had applied at the Greeley Police Department and listed me as a reference. One afternoon, as I was sitting in my second-floor apartment, I heard noises next door, looked out the window, and saw a Greeley cop going around that house, beating on every door he could find. A couple of days later, I was in the police station, checking the blotter, when that cop appeared and said he'd like to talk to me. Invitations like that can lead to trouble if refused, so I agreed. He asked me about Tom, and without stretching the truth unduly, I told him Tom was a decent and upstanding citizen. Then the cop asked me why I hadn't answered my door a couple of days ago when he'd come to check on Tom's reference - I didn't have a phone at the time. "You went to the wrong house,'' I said. "I saw you next door, and I wondered what was going on.'' "No I didn't,'' he said. "You're wrong.'' We looked at the address Tom had given them for me, and it was the correct address. The cop had indeed gone to the wrong address. Although I was sorely tempted, I did not push the issue, lest I jeopardize Tom's job application, and he may have owed me money at the time so that it was in my interest for him to be gainfully employed. Everybody makes mistakes. On a regular warrant, if the police show up at the wrong house, whoever answers the door can gently show them the street number on the mailbox, accept their apology if they bother to offer one and return to normal life. On a no-knock, those safeguards don't happen. From what I read, most no-knock warrants are used in the War on Drugs, and its rationale is getting mighty thin as this millennium ends. The main argument is that we have to control certain substances, or else young people will use them and ruin their lives. Granted, there are addictive substances that make you stupid, but the principal of these is alcohol, and you'd think America would have learned the lesson after Prohibition failed. But the question is: Does youthful use necessarily lead to a life of dissipation? If the answer is negative, then what's the point of the War on Drugs? That's why Texas Gov. George W. Bush remains coy about his youthful adventures. If he were to say "Yeah, I did some stupid things, but I got over it, and so will most other people,'' the entire Drug-War Industrial Complex would fund some other candidate, one who could be relied upon to tell the customary lies and keep the funds flowing. There aren't many rays of sunshine amid all these frauds and deceptions, but one glows just to the south of us. New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson hasn't just admitted to "youthful experimentation.'' A few months ago, he flat-out said he smoked a lot of pot and snorted cocaine. Without the benefit of prison or therapy from William Bennett, he went on to a successful business and political career. The good news for the coming election year is that there's one honest Republican governor in the country. The bad news is that he's not the one that Republicans want to nominate for the presidency. Ed Quillen of Salida is a former newspaper editor whose column appears Tuesdays and Sundays. SAMPLE LETTER (sent) To the editor of the Denver Post: Thank you for printing Ed Quillen's excellent column on yet another tragedy in our counterproductive war on drugs ("New Mexico's Ray of Sunshine Amid the Usual Gloom" Dec. 26). That a father like Ismael Mena should lose his life because someone told police they obtained $20 worth of crack at Mena's house is obscene. The circumstances surrounding this incident should be a wake-up call to every American, even if they (like Mena) have nothing to do with illegal drugs. If anyone but a gang of police burst into a private residence, terrorized the inhabitants with paramilitary tactics, shot one resident to death, tore the interior apart and then held another residents captive, it would be national news. Imagine the non-stop coverage and breast-beating if high school students had committed an act half as brutal. Legislators would be tripping over themselves to punish someone. But, in terms of the drug war, Mena's death and his family's terror are just bit more collateral damage. If more citizens don't express outrage over this tragedy and the whole devastating war on drugs, they can't expect much reaction when the anti-drug squad kicks in their door some dark night. As the Mena story illustrates, innocence is no protection in such a situation. Stephen Young IMPORTANT: Always include your address and telephone number Please note: If you choose to use this letter as a model please modify it at least somewhat so that the paper does not receive numerous copies of the same letter and so that the original author receives credit for his/her work. ADDITIONAL INFO to help you in your letter writing efforts 3 Tips for Letter Writers http://www.mapinc.org/3tips.htm Letter Writers Style Guide http://www.mapinc.org/style.htm Prepared by Stephen Young - http://home.att.net/~theyoungfamily Focus Alert Specialist

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