Pubdate: Mon, 29 Jul 2002 Source: Rochester Democrat and Chronicle (NY) Copyright: 2002 Rochester Democrat and Chronicle Contact: http://www.democratandchronicle.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/614 Author: Joseph Jozkowski GROUP RAPS PATAKI EFFORT ON DRUG LAWS TV Ad Says Governor's Plan Doesn't Redirect Emphasis To Rehabilitation (July 26, 2002) - ALBANY - Advocates for drug-law reform renewed criticism of Gov. George Pataki's lack of progress on the issue, unveiling a TV advertisement Thursday that calls for changes in the sentencing laws. The ad, paid for by the group Drug Policy Alliance, says Pataki's plan for changing New York's Rockefeller-era drug laws is too weak to be effective. The ad features Mary Mortimore, the mother of a man serving 15 to 30 years on a low-level drug offense, and former state Sen. John Dunne. The ad is set to run for two weeks on New York 1, an all-news network in New York City; Dunne said the ad also would be translated for Spanish-language networks. Dunne, a sponsor of the 1973 package of drug laws viewed by some reformers to be among the harshest in the nation, now calls them a "well-documented failure" in the ad. "The governor's reform will also fail if it does not effectively redirect people and resources away from prison to treatment and rehabilitation," Dunne says in the ad. Mortimore, a Schenectady resident with a terminal illness, makes an emotional plea for the release of the son she says she hasn't seen in 10 years. The Pataki administration called the ad campaign "political games." The drug laws, passed in 1973 under Gov. Nelson Rockefeller, mandate prison time for anyone convicted of a second felony and enforce a sentence of 15 years to life for those convicted of selling 2 ounces or possessing 4 ounces of narcotics. Pataki, a Republican, said last year that rewriting the laws was one of his top priorities. However, activists said Pataki hasn't pushed for true reform and has made unrealistic promises about releasing some prisoners in a matter of weeks if his plan is adopted. The governor's plan would shorten the harshest sentences and put more people into drug treatment. Critics say Pataki's plan doesn't give judges enough sentencing discretion, leaves prosecutors with too much power over who gets drug treatment and doesn't change the threshold weights for felonies. A Pataki spokesman said the group was playing political games and said the governor had a "smart, balanced plan." The governor's plan would "give some additional discretion to judges and realize the value of rehabilitation," said spokesman Michael McKeon. He said Pataki's plan would recognize the role that prosecutors should play in sentencing. Talks between the governor and the Legislature to reform the laws broke down in June. This isn't the first TV ad groups have produced to criticized Pataki on the issue. In June, Spanish-language television stations in New York City pulled an ad paid for by the Drug Policy Alliance after Pataki aides said it was inaccurate. The Pataki administration claimed the ad misstated the number of people in jail serving top sentences for drug crimes. But detractors claim Pataki aides were trying to silence criticism of the governor in the Latino community, where Pataki has been courting Hispanic voters in his bid for re-election. "If he wants to do something palpable (for Latinos), he can change these laws," said Randy Credico, a spokesman for the Mothers of the New York Disappeared, a group of family members of jailed drug offenders. About the new ad, Dunne said: "There's nothing in regards to factual content that would be in any way disputable." - --- MAP posted-by: Larry Stevens