Pubdate: Sun, 08 Mar 2009
Source: Washington Square News (New York U, NY Edu)
Copyright: 2009 Washington Square News
Contact:  http://www.nyunews.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1621
Author: Brianna Lee
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?140 (Rockefeller Drug Laws)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/rehab.htm (Treatment)

DRUG LAW REFORM IN WORKS

A new bill in the state legislature may amend New York  drug laws to 
make it easier for drug offenders to  receive treatment instead of 
prison sentences.

The bill to reform the Rockefeller drug laws, named for  former 
governor Nelson Rockefeller who enacted the laws  in 1973, passed in 
the New York State Assembly last  Wednesday by a vote of 96 to 46.

Current laws require mandatory prison sentences for the  sale and 
possession of illegal drugs depending on the  weight of the drugs 
involved. Medical treatment for  offenders is granted only with the 
prosecutor's  consent.

The new measure allows judges to decide whether  offenders should 
receive medical treatment services.  This decision can be made 
without requiring a  prosecutor's approval. Additionally, the bill 
allows treatment for those already serving sentences and  creates 
medical assistance services upon release.

According to the New York Civil Liberties Union, 90  percent of those 
incarcerated for drug-related crimes  are African-American or Latino. 
But NYCLU says drug use  is equal among minorities and whites.

"Powerful lobbyists too long have believed that long  prison 
sentences result in safer communities," NYCLU  Public Policy Counsel 
Corinne Carey said. "That's not  the case."

Dennis Smith, associate professor of public policy at  Wagner, is 
also happy with the new bill.

"This is a reform that's been a long time coming,"  Smith said.

Smith said the changes were slow because "the notion of  treatment is 
sometimes viewed as soft, and nobody wants  to seem soft on crime." 
But, he said, "the people  pushing this bill don't think it's soft; 
it's just  smart."

Carey noted that the bill still leaves room for much  more reform.

"The sentencing grid should be lessened," Carey said.  "We 
incarcerate people for far too long. The bill  doesn't touch that at all."

The bill has been introduced in the Senate, which still  has yet to vote on it.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom