Pubdate: Thu, 20 Jul 2000
Source: BuffaloBeat (NY)
Copyright: 2000 BuffaloBeat
Contact:  285 Ellicott Street, Buffalo, NY 14203
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Website: http://www.buffalobeat.com/
Author: Jim Hightower, AlterNet

Common Sense Drug Policy

Just as volcanic eruptions are earth-shattering, every now and then we
get an eruption of common sense from high government officials. It's
so surprising that, when it occurs, we should take notice and cheer.

So here's a "hip-hip hooray!" for Chief Judge Judith Kaye of New York.
The judge recently ruled that state courts there will become the first
in the nation to provide medical treatment rather than jail time to
non-violent criminals who are drug addicts. This ruling blows apart
the rock-bound, draconian drug policies imposed by a generation of
opportunistic politicians trying to look "tough" by throwing ill
people into prisons.

Judge Kaye's breakthrough order is based on pilot programs in New York
and elsewhere that have proven addiction treatment to be remarkably
successful at reducing the number of people who commit crimes like
prostitution to support their drug addictions. The New York Times
reports that court-required treatment is a success in 70 percent of
cases. Indeed, in New York City's treatment program, 88 percent of
offenders who participated were not arrested again. They get a chance
to break the cycle of drugs, crime, and prison -- enabling them to
lead productive lives and restore their families.

Not only is this of obvious benefit to the participants, but it's also
a break for us taxpayers. In New York, for example, the state spends
$29,000 a year to keep each and every one of these addicts in a prison
cell. It costs about $650 million a year in New York to imprison these
people, while treatment costs only about $100 million. Even much of
that amount gets paid back, however, since these addicts are no longer
on the streets costing us in police actions --instead they are in jobs
and paying taxes.

This is Jim Hightower saying . . . Now, if only Judge Kaye's sensible
approach to drug-policy issues would trigger even a minor tremor of
common sense in the head of Drug Czar Barry McCaffrey — hey...then
we'd really be making progress! 
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