Pubdate: Wed, 09 Jun 2004 Source: Times Union (Albany, NY) Copyright: 2004 Capital Newspapers Division of The Hearst Corporation Contact: http://www.timesunion.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/452 Action: http://www.realreform2004.com/ Please view our fantastic Flash animation at www.realreform2004.com/flash Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?140 (Rockefeller Drug Laws) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?199 (Mandatory Minimum Sentencing) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/prison.htm (Incarceration) WELCOME DISSENT A Democratic primary in Albany County puts more focus on Rockefeller Drug Laws reform When state legislators appeared last week to be perhaps closer than they've ever been to reducing the harshest prison sentences of all mandated by the brutal failure known as the Rockefeller era drug laws, it came with the usual caveat. The state's district attorneys are, of course, adamantly opposed to such long overdue reform. And in their alliance with police chiefs, police unions and others in law enforcement, New York's prosecutors wield enormous clout. Their ability to stop even modest changes in the drug laws makes them as powerful as any special-interest group in Albany. But what if the district attorneys stopped opposing such reform? What if there were DAs who wanted the drug laws rewritten? Blocking such efforts to fix the drug laws, as happened in the Legislature again on Monday, wouldn't be remotely as easy. As it happens, an assistant prosecutor named David Soares is running against Albany County District Attorney Paul Clyne, one of the most vociferous and inflexible defenders of the Rockefeller Drug Laws. The September Democratic primary has the potential to be a referendum on more than three decades of draconian injustice, with Mr. Soares pressing the case for drug laws that are both humane and effective. That won't be the only issue in that race, of course. It might not even be the deciding one. But neither can an election for district attorney be waged this year in Albany County without debating the wisdom and effectiveness of the Rockefeller era drug laws. Mr. Soares makes the point that there has to be a better way to fight crime than incarceration at all costs. Drug crime, for instance, could be more effectively addressed by confronting demand, rather than supply. Treatment of drug users needs to be more of a priority than locking up suppliers, who themselves are often addicts. Mr. Soares has developed these views in his tenure as a so-called community prosecutor in the district attorney's office. He held that job until last Thursday, the day he informed Mr. Clyne that he would be running against him. For that, Mr. Soares immediately found himself with a new title and job description -- former assistant district attorney. In Mr. Clyne's office, the draconian approach isn't restricted to drug offenders. Mr. Soares' firing might well become a legal battle of its own. His is a most unwelcome candidacy in some quarters. Mr. Soares has been denounced already by county Democratic leader Betty Barnette, on the grounds that he didn't get into the race soon enough. His failure to follow the timetable set by the party leaders, she says, is a reflection of his lack of qualifications to be DA. The race is on now, though. Let's hope it's won on more substantive matters than that. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake