Pubdate: Fri, 07 Sep 2001
Source: Register-Guard, The (OR)
Copyright: 2001 The Register-Guard
Contact:  http://www.registerguard.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/362
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/testing.htm (Drug Testing)

CRITIC OF PRISON DRUG DETECTOR WON'T BE PROSECUTED

McMINNVILLE - A Portland health care advocate arrested last month after she 
was singled out by a prison drug detector will not face charges, a 
prosecutor said Thursday.

Mariah Taylor was arrested Aug. 24 at the federal prison at Sheridan. She 
was visiting her son when a scanning machine indicated she was carrying 
illegal substances.

Taylor, who turned in her own son for dealing drugs, said she did not have 
any narcotics and refused to leave the prison.

She was to have been arraigned Sept. 10 in Yamhill County on charges of 
criminal trespassing.

Taylor is founder and director of the North Portland Nurse Practitioner 
Community Health Clinic. She has appeared on the Oprah Winfrey Show and 
received an honorary doctorate from Linfield College for her work.

Taylor is one of several prison visitors who have complained in recent 
weeks that the ion detection device used at the Sheridan prison is so 
powerful it finds tiny quantities of drug residue unknowingly picked up 
from sources such as currency and taxi seats.

Several visitors have offered to undergo strip searches or take urine 
tests. Some have commissioned urine tests on their own to prove they are 
not carrying or consuming drugs.

Citing federal regulations, prison officials have refused to make any 
allowances or hear any appeals.

Yamhill County District Attorney Brad Berry said Thursday that Taylor will 
not be prosecuted. He said his decision was based partly on her involvement 
in the community, and the fact that she does not have any criminal record.
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MAP posted-by: Keith Brilhart