Pubdate: Sat, 28 Dec 2002
Source: Macomb Daily, The (MI)
Copyright: 2002 The Macomb Daily
Contact:  http://www.macombdaily.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2253
Author: Chad Selweski, Macomb Daily Staff Writer
Bookmarks: http://www.mapinc.org/find?199 (Mandatory Minimum Sentencing)
http://www.mapinc.org/states/mi/ (Michigan)

GET-TOUGH DRUG LAW SOFTENED

Michigan, which once sat at No. 1 in the rankings as the toughest
state in the nation on drug crimes, has tumbled off the charts with a
new law signed Christmas Day by outgoing Gov. John Engler. The new law
eliminates Michigan's mandatory minimum sentences, which had sent
thousands of drug offenders to prison for 10 or 20 years, and some for
life.

The decision by Engler and the Legislature to eliminate mandatory
penalties and restore judge's discretion at sentencing received mixed
reaction from local officials and attorneys involved in the judicial
process.

"The judge should have the job of taking into account all the
different factors - age, prior convictions, the defendant's degree of
involvement in the case," Macomb Circuit Judge Mark Switalski said.
"You can't lump all cases together and say everyone deserves a
mandatory minimum."

Sheriff Mark Hackel said he respects judges' authority to exercise
flexibility when handing down sentences. But he worries that the new
law may hurt investigators' ability to coerce drug suspects into
cooperating with police in exchange for leniency.

"It gives us something to work with to get people ... to become
informants. That's how our business is run," Hackel said. "Now, the
guy may say, 'Hey, there's no mandatory minimums. I'll take my chances
with the judge.'"

The mandatory sentences were intended to send a message that Michigan
was serious about the "War on Drugs." In the 1980s, the state's drug
law was notorious for its mandatory life sentence, without possibility
of parole, for those convicted of possessing or trafficking 650 grams
(1.4 pounds) of cocaine or heroin.

The penalty received national attention - and nationwide criticism in
the 1990s. That provision was eventually softened by the Michigan
Supreme Court and the Legislature.

But those convicted in cases involving 50 to 649 grams of narcotics
still faced mandatory sentences of 10 or 20 years.

Critics said the law was intended to take drug "kingpins" off the
streets, but often snared couriers or first-time offenders. The new
law gives judges the discretion to put some offenders on probation.

Macomb County Prosecutor Carl Marlinga, once an outspoken advocate of
mandatory minimums, said limited prison space is sometimes being
occupied by nonviolent drug offenders rather than murderers and rapists.

"Mandatory minimums came in at a time when many judges, especially in
Wayne County, were giving probation to virtually any (drug defendant)
who walked into court," Marlinga said. "I think the mood of society
has changed since then."

That shift, Marlinga said, has resulted in tougher sentencing as more
judges face tougher competition at election time.

According to a Senate Fiscal Agency estimate, the law will reduce the
number of prison beds occupied by drug offenders by 286 after five
years and 465 after 40 years.

Still, the Michigan prison population is nearly 50,000.

Marlinga predicts the law's impact won't be significant because large
drug busts have become rare as the business has decentralized to
protect ringleaders from maximum penalties.

In addition, plea bargains routinely granted by prosecutors' offices
allowed suspects to make a deal and avoid the mandatory minimum
sentence prescribed by the old law.

Defense attorney Steven Rabaut of St. Clair Shores, who has handled
hundreds of drug cases over the past 20 years, said he believes the
Legislature took action not out of a sense of justice, but to help
reduce the state's looming $1.8 billion budget deficit. The cost of
housing each state prisoner is $28,000 a year.

"I think it's illogical to spend the money they're spending to house
these people (nonviolent drug offenders)," Rabaut said. "Each
defendant who appears before a judge has a portfolio, so to speak, and
should be sentenced accordingly." 
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MAP posted-by: Richard Lake