Pubdate: Fri, 07 Jun 2002
Source: Daily Gazette (NY)
Copyright: 2002 The Gazette Newspapers
Contact:  http://www.dailygazette.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/105
Author: Shirin Parsavand
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?140 (Rockefeller Drug Laws)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?155 (Drug Policy Alliance)

DRUG LAW REFORM AGREEMENT LOOMS

Assembly Bill Moves Toward Pataki

ALBANY - Assembly Democrats moved toward some of the governor's positions 
on reforming the state's Rockefeller-era drug laws in a proposal released 
Wednesday.

The new legislation does not match every part of the governor's plan, but 
Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver said he hopes the compromise bill will lead 
to an agreement with the governor and Senate on reforming the strict drug laws.

"We are trying to provide the leadership necessary to move this particular 
issue to reality. We're doing the work, we've done the work, and we are now 
attempting to meet the governor more than halfway," Silver said. He said he 
expects the Assembly to pass the bill within the next week.

Last month, Gov. George Pataki came out with the latest of several 
proposals to reform the Rockefeller drug laws. Pataki's proposal is not in 
bill form yet. But his criminal justice coordinator, Chauncey Parker, has 
been meeting with drug reform groups and others over the past month to get 
their views on the plan.

As under the governor's plan, the new Assembly bill would give prosecutors 
the first chance to decide whether a drug offender should go to prison or 
drug treatment. Under both plans, a judge could overrule the prosecutor's 
decision, however.

The new Assembly bill, like the governor's plan, would remove the 
possibility of life imprisonment for drug offenses. It would set specific 
sentences for only the most serious drug offenses, while Pataki would set 
specific sentences for all drug offenders.

The new Assembly bill also includes a "one strike and you're out rule" that 
would bar offenders from being sentenced to a drug treatment program if 
they have completed a court-approved treatment program in the past.

Silver said that was comparable to the governor's plan to limit the pool of 
nonviolent drug addicts eligible for treatment.

The new proposal also removes gun control measures that were in the 
original Assembly bill, including a provision that would prohibit violent 
felons from ever possessing a gun. Silver said these measures could be seen 
as "poison pills" that would block an agreement on drug law reform.

Silver said Assembly Democrats would advance a separate package of bills to 
reduce the supply of illegal guns to drug dealers. The new Assembly bill 
contains a provision similar to the governor's proposal, which would impose 
a mandatory five-year sentence on anyone who commits a drug offense while 
carrying a gun.

Both the Assembly bill and the governor's plan would allow some inmates 
imprisoned under the Rockefeller drug laws to be resentenced under the new 
provisions. Silver said roughly 8,000 inmates could be affected by the 
Assembly legislation.

The governor and Legislature have talked about reforms to the Rockefeller 
drug laws for several years, but have been unable to agree on a plan.

Assembly Democrats said the possibility of reform seems better this year, 
because of the potential for savings at a time when the state's resources 
are stretched. It is also an election year for the governor and the 
Legislature, and the governor has been trying to reach out to minorities.

"The governor has positioned himself as more moderate, particularly with 
people of color," said Assemblyman Ron Canestrari, D-Cohoes.

Caroline Quartararo, spokeswoman for the Division of Criminal Justice 
Services, said the Assembly plan represents progress in the effort to 
reform the drug laws.

"We'll review their proposal, but it looks like a good first step and we're 
working hard to get something done," she said.

Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno, R-Brunswick, said Senate Republicans 
want to review the governor's bill, and are "open to getting something 
done" on reforming the drug laws.

Former state Sen. John Dunne, a Republican who co-sponsored the Rockefeller 
drug laws and is now lobbying to reform them, said he is encouraged by the 
attempt at compromise.

But he said he has concerns about some aspects of the new Assembly bill, 
particularly that it limits the current inmates who would qualify for release.

"So many families have stood firm and have really been the most convincing 
advocates for reform. It's clear there are significant injustices for 
countless people who are in prison," he said.

Deborah Small of the drug-reform group Drug Policy Alliance said she was 
happy the Assembly proposal seems to be a move toward a compromise. But she 
said both the Assembly and governor's proposals exclude drug offenders with 
more than one offense, whom she said are those most in need of treatment.

Schenectady County District Attorney Robert Carney said he doesn't see the 
new Assembly bill as a compromise with the governor's plan.

"This is not substantially different than the [Assembly] proposal last 
year, and in some ways it may be worse," Carney said.

Carney, chairman of the executive committee for the New York State District 
Attorneys Association, said sweeping changes to the state's drug laws are 
not necessary. But he said the governor's plan, at least, would provide for 
court-ordered drug treatment in a more limited set of circumstances than 
the new Assembly bill would.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom