Pubdate: Fri, 19 Jan 2001 Source: Albany Times Union (NY) Copyright: 2001 Capital Newspapers Division of The Hearst Corporation, Albany, Contact: News Plaza, Box 15000, Albany, NY 12212 Website: http://www.timesunion.com/ DRUG LAW PROGRESS Gov. Pataki Outlines A Promising Start Toward Reforming The Rockefeller Statutes Gov. Pataki's proposal to reduce the harsh sentences called for under the state's Rockefeller drug laws holds the promise that genuine reform will become a reality this year. That promise is even brighter now that Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, D-Manhattan, has ended his opposition to any reform out of fear that it might make Democrats appear soft on crime. With Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno, R-Brunswick, also prepared to negotiate, there is every reason to expect movement this year. Mr. Pataki's previous reform proposal was unacceptable to many reform proponents, including Assembly Democrats, because it was tied to the abolition of parole for all felons. But now the governor has wisely relented on that condition and has set forth a reform package that stands on its own. It includes reductions in the severest penalties, more discretion for judges at sentencing, and an emphasis on treatment rather than incarceration. Not surprisingly, some reform advocates, while hailing the governor's plan as an important first step, are cautioning that is does not go far enough. They have a point. When it comes to the harshest sentences, only about 500 inmates would be eligible to apply retroactively to have their 15-years-to-life sentences reduced, and then only to 8 1/3 to life. That compares with the 22,000 drug offenders now in prison, out of a total inmate population of 70,000. Still, the governor's proposal contains other initiatives to reduce the numbers of drug offenders in the overall prison population. There are provisions for lowering sentences for repeat offenders, for example. Just as important, it gives low-level, nonviolent first offenders a second chance by stressing treatment wherever possible. Judges, too, will have more leeway to tailor punishment to fit the crime. At the same time, Mr. Pataki is right to seek tougher penalties for drug crimes involving guns and to keep "kingpins'' behind bars for long sentences. The purpose of the Rockefeller drug laws was, after all, to target the big-time dealers. But they are rarely caught, largely because lower-level offenders will not testify against them out of fear for their lives. On the rare occasions when they are arrested, they have resources to hire top legal talent to defend them. Regrettably, Mr. Pataki's new budget does not contain funds for new drug treatment programs that his reform plan will clearly require. The theory is that funds will be freed up as the state prison population declines, but that's by no means a certainty. Meanwhile, some advocates are worried that as more and more drug offenders are sentenced to treatment, they will compete for, and perhaps even displace, the law-abiding patients who need help in combating drug and alcohol addiction. If Mr. Pataki and legislative leaders are serious about reform, they will have to address the money issue soon. For the moment, though, they deserve praise for facing, head-on, the issue of unequal treatment under drug laws that have not served the interests of justice since they were enacted 28 years ago. - --- MAP posted-by: Larry Stevens