Pubdate: Wed, 14 Sep 2011 Source: Calgary Herald (CN AB) Copyright: 2011 Canwest Publishing Inc. Contact: http://www2.canada.com/calgaryherald/letters.html Website: http://www.calgaryherald.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/66 KEEP DRUGS OUT OF PRISONS It's tempting to write off the death of Kory Stewart Mountain as nothing more than an unfortunate accident. That's what the fatality inquiry into his Dec. 2, 2008, death at the Drumheller Institution did. It recently concluded the 40-year-old's overdose behind bars was accidental and that staff made no errors. "The so-called war on drugs is, in my humble view, a war which cannot be won," fatality inquiry Judge Les Grieve wrote in his report. "Society does not seem committed to this battle, as can be seen by sports heroes and other celebrity role models who use drugs, even smuggle them, yet are still revered by the masses. It may be that all we can hope for in this war is to keep the casualties to a minimum." But given Mountain's death, and the death of other inmates, surely it's a war that must be waged. In putting offenders behind bars, our prison system must carry some measure of responsibility for their safety and rehabilitation. Kevin Grabowsky, regional president of the Union of Canadian Correctional Officers, said last fall that Drumheller Institution is rife with drugs, with narcotics sometimes shot over the fence using a bow and arrow or a slingshot. "We've even had the drugs put in dead birds and the bird thrown over," said Grabowsky. "Tennis balls. Anything with a little weight." Grieve is urging the federal government to continue to emphasize the education of young aboriginal people and continue funding drug addiction treatment programs. To that list, we'd add taking steps that cleanse our prisons of drugs that all too often lead to death. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard R Smith Jr.