Pubdate: Sun, 19 Jul 2015
Source: Albuquerque Journal (NM)
Copyright: 2015 Albuquerque Journal
Contact:  http://www.abqjournal.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/10
Author: Javier Martinez
Note: Rep. Javier Martinez Democrat, Albuquerque

EL CHAPO'S ESCAPE A LESSON

Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman's most recent prison escape is a tremendous 
blow not only for Mexican authorities but also for the U.S. government.

One of the world's most notorious criminals escaped last week from 
one of Mexico's most secure prisons in a rather conventional fashion: 
by digging a tunnel. This is not El Chapo's first escape. In 2001 he 
escaped from another Mexican maximum security prison, reportedly by 
sneaking out in a laundry cart.

The Mexican government's failure to keep one of the world's most 
dangerous criminals behind bars is astonishing.

Equally disturbing is the inability or unwillingness of the U.S. 
government to pursue the extradition of Guzman, who rose to the top 
of the FBI Most Wanted list in 2010 following the capture and killing 
of Osama Bin Laden.

El Chapo Guzman is no petty criminal. He leads one of the world's 
most successful and murderous criminal enterprises.

The Sinaloa Cartel is a trans-national corporation in its own right, 
responsible for trafficking thousands of tons of illicit drugs - 
through tunnels, no less - throughout the U.S., as well as Latin 
America, Africa, Europe, and Asia. Its annual earnings are in the 
tens of billions of dollars and, in the process, thousands of lives 
are lost each year to the violence that is inherent to the illicit drug trade.

For better or for worse, Guzman's latest escape doesn't change much 
for the Sinaloa Cartel's operations other than perhaps some internal 
power struggles.

In fact, his arrest 18 months ago had minimal impact on the 
transnational drug trade.

The Sinaloa Cartel, and its many rival organizations, continued with 
business as usual. No single arrest, no dismemberment of any one 
criminal organization, will curb the drug trade.

The real problem is that for the past 50 years we have pursued the 
wrong strategy.

Arresting or killing drug traffickers, criminalizing users and 
militarizing our police forces have yielded poor and ineffective 
results. It's time for a change in strategy. As a country we must 
evolve from our failed War on Drugs, and New Mexico can lead the way.

That's why I am calling on our governor to place the issues of drug 
policy and criminal justice reform on her call in the upcoming 2016 
legislative session.

New Mexico can be a leader in reforming our criminal justice system. 
Drug addicts must be treated as patients, not as criminals. 
Legalizing marijuana will usher in a new era of regulated, taxable 
industry no different than the alcohol and tobacco industries.

By focusing our resources on prevention, education and treatment, 
rather than on criminalization and imprisonment, we can ensure that 
our young people do not fall victim to the perils of addiction.

The choice is clear. We can continue with our tired strategy of 
criminalizing drug users or we can change course.

If we don't, the likes of El Chapo will continue building their 
tunnels, and we will continue digging our hole.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom