Pubdate: Sun, 13 May 2001 Source: Journal Gazette (IN) Copyright: 2001 Journal Gazette Contact: http://www.jg.net/jg/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/908 Author: Niki Kelly INDIANA DRUG DEAL SENTENCES CHANGED INDIANAPOLIS - Non-violent drug offenders could spend less time behind bars as a result of several changes made to state sentencing laws by the General Assembly this session. The shift in sentencing options is either a sign that lawmakers recognize a need for alternative punishments and treatment or that legislators are looking to free up space - and money - in the expanding Department of Correction. For the first time ever, some drug dealers will be allowed to serve their sentences in home detention or work release. And other inmates will be eligible for earlier release under the state's Community Transition Program. Legislators also made it harder to hit drug offenders with long sentences due to their habitual status, or having multiple prior felony convictions. "People are talking treatment rather than throwing away the key," said Allen Superior Judge Kenneth R. Scheibenberger. "I'm not sure what (the legislature) had in mind, but I think there is a general philosophic trend away from that." Rep. B. Patrick Bauer, D-South Bend, sought the new community transition and habitual drug offender language, and then inserted the provisions into the budget, which became law last week. "It's a tax savings, but also perhaps we need to focus more on rehabilitation," Bauer said. He said 40 percent of all DOC prisoners are non-violent, and they cost the state between $25,000 and $30,000 a year to house. On the other hand, it costs community corrections between $7 and $35 per day to supervise an offender. "Many of these prisoners are drug offenders who are not dangerous to society. They are only dangerous to themselves," Bauer said. "We put them in prisons, which are known as schools of crime, they come out hardened and two of three go back. "We're trying to stem the tide of building more prisons." There are at least 1,700 men serving time in prison for only drug offenses, according to the Department of Correction. Of that number, 73 sentences were enhanced by the habitual offender statute. Allen County Prosecutor Robert W. Gevers II said the sentencing changes are not a signal Indiana is giving up the war on drugs; he doesn't believe there ever was one. "If in fact the country determined that we were truly going to wage a war on drugs - as defined by a dictionary and not this piecemeal, halfhearted approach - we would not be having this conversation. It would be over." The new approach seems to indicate the legal system is at odds with how to treat drug offenders - lock them up as criminals or rehabilitate them as addicts. This year, the legislature did a little of both. Lawmakers increased penalties for methamphetamine offenses but at the same time allowed those convicted to transition into society as much as six months earlier. "We're struggling to find what works," Gevers said. "Putting them in jail isn't, but we haven't developed a coherent strategy for dealing with drug abuse in this country." Some will see this year's changes as a weakening of the laws, while others will hail them as a needed attempt to end the cycle of drug abuse and crime. The difference of opinion is best illustrated by the Indiana Prosecuting Attorneys Council, which worked with lawmakers throughout the process on the bills, but could not come to agreement on the answer as an organization. The group's board of directors had a "slew of opinions," but no consensus could be reached, said Executive Director Steve Johnson. "There's a lot of consideration about the effectiveness of the laws. Everyone is trying to figure out the best way to handle this," Johnson said. "We are not waving the white flag. States all over the country are just re-examining the war on drugs." Sentencing options The multitude of changes arrive through several different pieces of legislation, including the state budget and a bill to attack the growing methamphetamine problem in Indiana. Drug dealers who weren't allowed to be placed on community corrections before will now be eligible for work release and home detention, Johnson said. Scheibenberger hailed the new provision because there are two levels of drug dealers - the entrepreneur doing it for money and the abuser doing it to feed an addiction. Right now Scheibenberger's only option for a person found guilty of baseline dealing is a suspended sentence or prison. There is no middle step that provides supervision and treatment. Judges need as many options as possible to get the "dealer" into the right sentencing alternative, Gevers said. "Some are hard-core dealers just making money while poisoning the streets, and we should lock them up and throw away the key," Gevers said. "But community corrections here in Allen County has proven itself as an intensive supervision, education and treatment program that is going to help some of those drug dealers who are simply unable to help themselves." For those drug offenders already serving time, Bauer's language provides for earlier release dates to the Community Transition Program. The initiative, which releases non-violent offenders from prison into a supervised situation, was started several years ago to more effectively transition convicts back into society. Allen County has one of the highest participation rates of all the counties in the program, as judges have agreed to release about 15 percent of those eligible. Marion County, on the other hand, has released less than 5 percent of those eligible for the program. Gevers attributes the high number to the confidence judges have in the local community corrections system. Right now, inmates can get out anywhere from 60 to 120 days early. The new law accelerates the early release for drug offenders. For example, a man convicted of a drug deal that does not involve a weapon could be released six months early. Scheibenberger said he has agreed to release about 30 percent of the cases brought to him, although they are largely low-level offenders who have not been a discipline problem in prison. He is unsure how he would feel about letting sentenced dealers back on the street. Habitual offenders The last major change made to the state's drug policy this year was in whom prosecutors can charge with being an habitual offender. Based on the "three strikes, you're out" philosophy, a person arrested on a felony charge can now be charged with being an habitual offender if that person has two unrelated prior felony convictions. If found guilty, the sentence can be enhanced up to 30 years depending on the underlying crime. Under the new provision, a prosecutor is limited in filing the habitual offender tag if the person is charged with a drug offense and only has prior drug convictions that do not include more than one dealing charge. For instance, Scheibenberger sentenced Alvin White of Fort Wayne to 20 years in prison last year for dealing cocaine, and then added another 20 years because he was found to be a habitual offender. Specifically, White had 1995 and 1997 convictions for drug possession, which now would make him ineligible for the enhancement. Gevers said his office files quite a few habitual offender charges in drug cases. The goal in seeking the additional conviction is to take the criminal off the street for the longest time possible. To do so, prosecutors often use the charge as a bargaining chip to get the accused to admit to the main charge and serve the maximum possible while avoiding the additional years. It's probably too early to gauge how many cases would be affected by the state's new change in policy because the restrictions are so narrow. The new provisions won't affect anyone charged with a violent crime or someone who has past violent convictions. "We may end up filing fewer habitual charges, and you won't see sentences as long as they could be," Gevers said. "There is little leverage when someone is given four strikes before they're out - it's a heck of a lot easier with three strikes." - --- MAP posted-by: Larry Stevens