Gov. Linda Lingle wants to bring back 1,200 Hawaii inmates from Mainland prisons. A unique alternative to incarceration for inmates sentenced on Maui for drug-related crimes has been in operation for over a year. Maui inmates are placed on early release, via 90 days of in-custody drug treatment in Dorm 3 at the Maui Community Correctional Center. Treatment for these inmates continues while released from custody on early parole or while furloughed into community Drug Court supervision for up to a year with weekly visits to the Drug Court judge. [continues 128 words]
Gov. Linda Lingle wants to bring back 1,200 inmates from Mainland prisons. A unique alternative to incarceration for inmates sentenced on Maui for drug-related crimes has been in operation for more than a year. Maui inmates are placed on early release, via 90 days of in-custody drug treatment in Dorm 3 at The Maui Community Correctional Center. Treatment for these inmates continues while released from custody on early parole, or while furloughed into Community Drug Court supervision for up to a year with weekly visits to the Drug Court judge. [continues 128 words]
Karen Blakeman's Dec. 22 superbly informative article on crystal methamphetamine probably did not include the effect of the "ice" tragedy on regular mainstream families and employers because of its specific focus. Many of our friends and neighbors have suffered multiple episodes of home break-ins. We have seen many employers take big financial hits from workers who are slaves to crystal meth. I have great compassion for many of these addicted victims and criminals (except Christopher Aki, the man accused of Kahealani Indreginal's murder) and their families, and I pray that Lt. Gov. "Duke" Aiona's experience as a judge in this area will create long-term effective solutions. [continues 67 words]
Editor: Last Saturday morning I was headed north into Kailua for Christmas shopping and come upon one of the many recent seat belt checkpoints. It happened to be right in the midst of one of the worst traffic bottlenecks between Captain Cook and Kainaliu. One officer was positioned on the makai side as the spotter and three other officers had the entire road tied up with at least eight cars 'semi' - pulled over. I was then approached by an officer who proceeded to inform me that I did not have my seatbelt fastened "correctly" and that it was illegal in Hawaii to wear the shoulder portion under my arm. I was also enlightened to the fact that "I may as well not wear a seatbelt at all if I wore it incorrectly." I was then gallantly informed that I would be "cut one break this time" and directed to pull back out into the traffic. More easily said than done as the number of "offending vehicles" were hemmed in double along the crowded roadside. During the rest of my trip town ward I passed three additional checkpoints manned with no less than three officers each. [continues 238 words]
We have all been witness to the destruction of thousands of Hawai'i families and the deterioration of our social fabric because of the disease called "ice" (crystal methamphetamine) that is rampaging through our Islands. As U.S. Attorney Ed Kubo has pointed out: * - Hawai'i has the worst crystal methamphetamine problem in the country with approximately 30,000 Hawai'i residents who are hard-core users and as many as 90,000 who are "recreational" users. (That's one in every 10 of us.) [continues 283 words]
When Christopher Aki was charged with the murder of Kahealani Indreginal -- an 11-year-old who had come to think of him as an uncle -- many in law enforcement weren't surprised to hear he had used crystal methamphetamine. "It's not surprising at all," said U.S. Attorney Ed Kubo. "In fact, I've come to expect it. I'm never surprised when I hear it is a factor in these extremely violent cases." The use of the drug often called ice has reached epidemic proportions in Hawai'i. Its effects, some of which linger for years after use has stopped, include psychosis, paranoia, agitation and extreme irrationality. [continues 1011 words]
I was surprised and disappointed to see The Advertiser promoting a PDA game called "Dope Wars." The author apparently found the game to be a lot of fun and appropriate as an "adult business simulation." As a professor of international business and a concerned citizen, I regret that The Advertiser, an important source of information and education for the children and adults of Hawai'i, decided to promote this game. Drug addiction is a serious problem in our state. It destroys the lives of many individual users and causes great sorrow and complications for family members, friends and neighbors. Let's not pretend that any minor lessons to be learned about doing business are of more value than the potential damage caused by trivializing our drug problem. Norman Wright Hau'ula [end]
HILO - Big Island lawyer and Teen Court judge Cynthia Linet smoked marijuana every night for six months during her chemotherapy treatments for cancer in 1998, she told members of the County Council Tuesday in testimony opposing the marijuana eradication program. Linet was among 14 people who testified against "Green Harvest" which is funded by at least $500,000 annually in state and federal grants. Councilmembers won't address the program's funding until March, when they begin work on the budget. However, residents offered testimony at the Finance Committee meeting Tuesday when an October marijuana eradication report from the police chief was taken up. [continues 452 words]
Editor: Mr. Ackert's proposal for handling drug cases might actually work. However, I believe the death penalty would work even better. The cost of killing off the drug users would be lower than incarceration. There would be more children available for adoption and the population explosion would abate. Traffic would become lighter and with no drug users on the highways driving would be safer. And then, after we the righteous have rid the world of drug users we could kill off the drinkers. And the smokers. Then the meat eaters. Alfred Anonimau Kailua-Kona [end]
After initially reading a recent letter in WHT advocating the discontinuance of the marijuana eradication program, I was at first certain that the author was rather poorly trying to make the point that the time and energy spent on marijuana eradication would be better spent attempting to eradicate the "ice" problem. Either that or he was attempting to write something humorous. In either case, he failed to make his point and, regrettably, as I read on, I realized that the article must have been drafted by a loyal disciple of Timothy Leary, and that he must have been under the influence of some mid-altering substance to believe that a rise in the use of one illegal drug can be blamed on and justifies the elimination of a program designed to reduce the growth and use of another illegal drug. [continues 833 words]
Ray Gagner's letter to the editor attacked harm-reduction approaches to drug policy reform as the "peddling of dangerous policies" (Star-Bulletin, Dec. 6). Ask yourself this: What is your priority? Is it more important to keep drug addicts from getting their hands on drugs, or to keep them from getting their hands on your property? As much as 90 percent of the property crime in Hawaii is committed by addicts stealing to obtain the funds to buy illegal drugs. A policy that allowed addicts to register with the state and obtain drugs at low cost would end our property crime problem. It will not cure addiction, but neither has 90 years of criminalizing it. [continues 74 words]
Ray Gagner's criticisms of the Drug Policy Alliance and its safety first, reality-based drug education policies are all wrong (Letters, Dec. 6). It is not the DPA that is promoting dangerous policies, but the current drug prevention regime of scare tactics and misinformation that are dangerous to our kids. Young people know that marijuana is not heroin and experimentation doesn't inevitably lead to addiction. Shoving "drugs are bad" propaganda down their throats only erodes their trust in authority and the education system. [continues 112 words]
In regard to the Dec. 8 Focus piece by Loren Walker, "Prisons fail," you are to be commended for yet another article pointing out the failures our society has made in correcting criminal behavior. Incarceration alone will not stop a drug addict's need and its consequences can lead to further hopelessness when the ex-con has difficulty getting a decent job. When there is limited hope in achieving the good life, as a criminal record can prevent, it becomes easier to perceive hope in dope and the criminal activities that relate to it. Hence, the high rate of recidivism. Let's start building more treatment facilities instead of prisons. Drug abuse is bad, but the war on drugs is hurting us all. Steven Hurst [end]
Maui is to be commended for introducing much-needed alternatives to incarceration for nonviolent drug offenders (The Maui News, Dec. 9). With violent crime continuing along a downward trend, the drug war is the principal reason the United States now has the highest incarceration rate in the world. A study conducted by RAND, a nonprofit research and analysis institution, found that every dollar invested in substance-abuse treatment saves taxpayers $7.46 in societal costs. There is far more at stake than tax dollars. The drug war is not the promoter of family values that some would have us believe. [continues 116 words]
Lorenn Walker's Dec. 8 commentary on a new prison is absolutely correct: Locking more and more people up will not solve our crime problems. Drug law violations and crime driven by drug addiction undeniably account for our exploding prison population. What we're doing is not working and we cannot afford the escalating fiscal and social costs of this approach. Ensuring enough easily accessible drug treatment is not only more cost-effective than prison, but would make a greater contribution to the well-being and safety of the entire community. Timothy McCormick [end]
It chills me when we as human beings consider "justice" and "compassion" to be "dangerous policies," as one letter writer suggested in his support of continuing the failed war on drugs (Star-Bulletin, Dec. 6). The "harm reduction" policies adopted by groups such as the Drug Policy Alliance focus on reducing the harmful effects of drug abuse on our society, not just on those who abuse drugs. Those who support the war on drugs would have us -- the tax-paying citizens - -- subsidize the punishment of anyone who associates with a federal list of illicit substances, both with more taxes and in the loss of peace that a Prohibition society incurs. [continues 67 words]
Inmates Get Honest In Jail Through New Maui Drug Court Program WAILUKU -- Sentenced to prison for stealing vehicles and possessing drugs, Erik Ekenberg is no stranger to incarceration. But the 35-year-old Kula man says his current stay at the Maui Community Correctional Center is unlike his prison terms of the past. For nearly three months, Ekenberg has undergone 12 hours a day of drug treatment while housed in Dorm 3, a 24-bunk jail dormitory designated only for male offenders participating in the Maui Drug Court. [continues 1497 words]
John J. Andrade Wanted To Do Well So Others Could Follow; Now He's A Leader WAILUKU -- When he had only six months left on his parole term last year, John J. Andrade could have done the time in jail and been free of further supervision. Instead, he decided to participate in a phase of the Maui Drug Court for nonviolent sentenced offenders, subjecting himself to another 15 months of meetings, classes, drug testing and scrutiny. And while at first he didn't plan to finish, Andrade said he soon realized that he was benefiting from the experience that began with 12 hours of daily treatment while he was incarcerated in a special dormitory at the Maui Community Correctional Center. [continues 720 words]
Your editorial on Marsha Rosenbaum of the Drug Policy Alliance betrays a lack of information as to what is going on today in the field of substance abuse prevention ("Teens need better advice about drug use than 'Just Say No,'" Star-Bulletin, Nov. 28). There is a large and growing body of social science research on what works and what does not in prevention. The prevention field advanced years ago from the scare tactics and "just say no" approaches that Rosenbaum denounces. A variety of research-based prevention programs is available to schools and communities that seek to shield youth from the dangers of drugs and alcohol. [continues 84 words]
HILO (AP) -- A marijuana advocate and former gubernatorial candidate must serve his full six-month term on felony drug charges before he can be released from jail, a Big Island judge has ruled. Jonathan Adler, 50, was convicted of marijuana charges in two separate cases and was sentenced in September to concurrent one-year prison sentences. At the sentencing, Circuit Judge Greg Nakamura said Adler would have to serve only half that time. On Tuesday, Nakamura denied a request filed by Adler's attorney asking the judge to release him three months early. [continues 68 words]
In the last year, Big Island police have gained federal allies in the war on "ice," or crystal methamphetamine. But in daily battles against drug trafficking, police are outnumbered and overworked. "This year, we've taken down four big ones (dealers)," said Marshall Kanehailua, acting lieutenant in charge of the Police Department's two vice squads. "But every time we hit one, another pops up." Money motivates new dealers to fill the void, Kanehailua said. On a busy night, the average Big Island dealer can sell between $7,000 and $8,000 of ice to about 45 addicts. About half the nightly take is profit, he said. [continues 804 words]
Federal Funds Will Help Local Researchers Study A Devastating Addiction Hawaii, the "crystal meth capital of the country," is one of six sites selected for a national study of treatments for crystal methamphetamine (ice) addiction, says Dr. William Haning III, University of Hawaii psychiatry professor. Psychiatrists participating in the study hope to develop a treatment program and research structure that could support a clinic for ice addicts as a spinoff, Haning said. Haning and Dr. Barry Carlton, also a UH psychiatry professor and chief of psychiatry at Queen's Medical Center, are principal investigators of the Pacific Addiction Center, a program of the John A. Burns Medical School and Queen's. [continues 856 words]
Kauai Community Correctional Center across Kuhio Highway from Wailua Golf Course remains locked down today after five inmates tested positive for methamphetamine, the warden said yesterday. Correctional officers found paraphernalia in the form of a drug pipe yesterday. Kauai Police Department will conduct its own investigation as the KCCC in-house investigation continues, said Neal Wagatsuma, KCCC warden. All work releases, passes and community-service releases for the inmates have been canceled for the entire month of December, he said. Until he gets some answers, KCCC will remain in lockdown mode. "We really want to get the culprits," especially those responsible for bringing drugs to the facility, Wagatsuma continued. [continues 138 words]
It begins with 30 days in jail. Signing an agreement with the judge admitting the facts behind a felony drug charge follows. Completing the judge's good - behavior requirements over 12 to 18 months - that's the tough part. At least, that's the expectation of the newly launched Big Island Drug Court. Departing the traditional approach to crime and punishment, the court gives non - violent drug offenders a second chance to clear a felony from their criminal record. Saving the state money in court time and imprisonment costs are a bonus. [continues 553 words]
The Issue - A Policy Group Urges Parents And Educators To Give Young People Information Instead Of Trying To Scare Them Straight. BY the time they reach their teen years, children are able to distinguish half-truths and exaggerations and are well aware that drug use transfuses American culture. So using scare tactics and promoting misinformation undermines the credibility of drug education efforts. The approach advanced by the Drug Policy Alliance to give young people clear information about the risks makes more sense. [continues 291 words]
Dr. Kunz is a specialist in Addiction Medicine, and a member of the West Hawaii Tobacco Free Coalition. There are many reasons to ban tobacco in public places, but I believe that the following are the top 10. For the benefit of our children, let's state clearly: "drug free means tobacco free." 10. Freedom to smoke cannot be freedom to harm. The Freedom-to-Smoke tobacco lobby was conceived and financed by the tobacco industry. Except for tobacco growing states, this argument is now generally accepted as bogus, dishonest and self-serving. We all share the right to seek health, happiness and freedom. [continues 824 words]
WASHINGTON (AP) The typical medicinal marijuana user is likely to resemble someone from the Baby Boom generation -- or older -- rather than a 20-something poster child, according to a congressional study. Data collected in Hawaii and Oregon -- two of the eight states allowing marijuana use for medical treatment -- show the majority of users are males, 40 years old or older. The study by the General Accounting Office, which covered Alaska and California as well, also said the relaxed drug laws in those four states have had minimal impact on crimefighting, although they at times complicate prosecution of drug cases. [continues 108 words]
Participants Receive Counseling And Must Take Courses To Change Their Behavior WAILUKU -- Maui Drug Court counselor Ronnie Santiago stood by a chalkboard inside a room at the Maui prison and asked a group of men seated in a classroom what happens when they're confronted with a situation that makes them angry. "My body gets hot," one of the men said. "What did you do?" Santiago asked. "I stuffed it." Santiago told the men that holding emotions within themselves is dangerous and could eventually lead to acting out frustrations on another person or surroundings. [continues 904 words]
Dear Editor, According to a Time/CNN poll, 80 percent of Americans support compassionate-use medical marijuana legislation and 72 percent believe adults who use Pakalolo recreationally should be fined, not jailed. The number of Americans who support taxing and regulating marijuana has doubled since 1986. Unfortunately, a review of marijuana legislation would open up a Pandora's box most politicians would just as soon avoid. America's marijuana laws are based on culture and xenophobia, not science. The first marijuana laws were enacted in response to Mexican migration during the early 1900s, despite opposition from the American Medical Association. White Americans did not even begin to smoke marijuana until a soon-to-be entrenched government bureaucracy began funding "reefer madness" propaganda. [continues 200 words]
Politics, little money and a "not in my back yard" attitude stopped efforts to build a new correctional facility in Hawai'i despite years of debate and an inmate population that nearly doubled in the past eight years. Gov. Ben Cayetano said arguments over cost, location and type of facility have managed to kill proposals during his tenure. "Nobody wanted it in their back yard. And we had a tough time with the unions because they oppose privatization." With his term coming to an end in a week, the governor continues to try to reach a deal with a private developer to build next to the Halawa Correctional Facility. [continues 1194 words]
Editor's note: This is the third and final in a series focusing on property crime and its impact on the community. Smoking so much "ice" he'd forget how many nights he'd been awake, cruising darkened neighborhoods to steal from carports, triggering arguments with his wife so he had an excuse to beat her - these are a few of the memories Thomas P. Gouveia III said he carries. "Lie, cheat and steal. I did it all. All for ice," he said. [continues 774 words]
LIHU'E - The island's drug problem is bigger than the mayor, according to the mayor-elect. It is bigger than the police department, and bigger than the state judicial system, said County Councilmember Bryan Baptiste, who in less than two weeks will be sworn in as mayor. But, it is not bigger than the island, said Baptiste, who feels a collective effort can make a difference in the local war on drugs. "We need to give this problem the attention it deserves," Baptiste told over 30 members of the Lihue Business Association at its monthly meeting yesterday at Hawaiian Classic Desserts on Rice Street here. [continues 812 words]
Property crime is the biggest single type of crime facing West Hawaii police, and our state overall suffers the distinction of leading the nation in some per capita rates of theft and larceny. The problem on this island, say police and prosecutors, stems from a single underlying cause: Drugs. "The reason we have so much property crime is an increase in crime related to 'ice' (crystal methamphetamine) use," Kona Police Patrol Capt. John Dawrs said. When officers arrest "ice" users, they usually find stolen property; when officers search for stolen property, they usually find "ice" users, Dawrs said. [continues 475 words]
THE ISSUE - A national review of state laws against driving under the influence of drugs has suggested "zero tolerance." DRUNKEN motorists are clearly identified by their blood-alcohol content, but authorities have no such formula to prove that a driver was under the influence of illicit drugs. Only eight states have "zero tolerance" for any drug use by motorists, while the other states, including Hawaii, require prosecutors to link erratic driving with drugs. Hawaii legislators should consider a flat prohibition of driving after using any illicit drug if no practical threshold level of drug content can be established. [continues 379 words]
The Kaua'i Police Department is using a new federal computer communications system that has the power to track drug offenders and suspects throughout the United States. Larry Burnett, director of the Hawaii High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) program, presented a series of crime statistics related to the increasing drug problem in Hawai'i, in particular, crystal methamphetamine - often called "ice" or "batu." The monthly police commission meeting was held Friday afternoon in the Historic County Building. Burnett said the goal is to reduce drug-related crime in Hawai'i by 10 percent in two years; by 25 percent in five years. A statewide $2.5 million grant will go toward programs to achieve that goal. The KPD is eligible for about $90,000 for training and specific drug operations. [continues 527 words]
The Kauai Police Department is in line to receive $90,000 to battle drug abuse, and aiming at fighting those who sell and use crystal methamphetamine, a drug that's known on the street as "ice" or "batu." The announcement came at a meeting of the Kaua'i Police Commission held Friday. The KPD is becoming part of a nationwide federal communications system that tracks drug offenders and drug trafficking suspects. The use of ice is a major problem on Kaua'i that hurts the entire community. The illegal substance draws both dealers and users into crime, and if not checked will lead dozens of today's Kaua'i children into crime when they come of age. Ice use and dealing leads to robberies, bad check writing, car theft and other crimes. [continues 401 words]
Gov. Cayetano should agree with the incoming administration's request to shelve negotiations to build a new jail because he shares the same vision that the new administration and many residents of this state envision for our brothers and sisters who are caught up in the cycle of drugs, crime and prison. Gov. Cayetano endorsed the implementation of the Hawai'i Drug Court program, launched by Lt. Gov.-elect Duke Aiona in 1996. Gov. Cayetano also introduced a law that is designed to provide treatment for first-time drug offenders. [continues 101 words]
Your Nov. 14 article "Windward crime wave alarms residents" accurately pointed out the shortage of police officers here as well as the sad but true criminal effects of the "ice" epidemic upon Windward Oahu. As a health-care provider, may I add that this drug has similarly affected the mental health-care community as well. There are financial and resource costs to ice use, beyond the most obvious costs of crime and the effects upon the families of people using ice. Ice induces biochemical changes in the brain that mimic mental illness, and eventually these changes are permanent. The mental-health community has seen a major onslaught of people in psychiatric crises induced by ice use. The Honolulu Police Department needs the fiscal resources to recruit good police officers to handle the crime problem caused by ice use. Our mental-health resources also need the proper attention and resources to deal with this ever-growing problem. Michelle Allen Kailua [end]
Dear Sir, Reading your story on the internet about the DEA conducting still more raids on individuals and groups conducting legal grow operations makes it perfectly clear to me how silly things have become in the name of the silly (and tragic) drug war. Just visualizing a team of federal agents going in and ripping up from the ground 20 ordinary plants, and I also recall images of Elliot Ness and his boys going through and doing the very same righteous seizing of whiskey kegs or bottles. Those images from many movies that have been made about social phenomena during that time of the Noble Experiment. This drug prohibition could be called the Noble and Cruel Experiment. Or the Noble and Immoral Experiment. Very truly yours, Richard Sinnott Fort Pierce, FL [end]
Until the moment of her swearing in, Linda Lingle is not governor and Ben Cayetano is. So he still has the right to make gubernatorial decisions as he sees fit. But since transition is less than a month away, it is imperative that the transfer of power go smoothly. We're pleased to hear from the Lingle camp that relations with the Cayetano administration have been cordial. In that spirit, it is crucial the Cayetano administration sit down with the Lingle team to discuss the governor's plans for a new $130 million jail in Halawa. [continues 196 words]
She Wants The Chance To Weigh The Merits Of The Construction Deal Ex-Finance Chief Will Lead Transition Team Governor-elect Linda Lingle is asking Gov. Ben Cayetano not to sign a multimillion-dollar contract to build a new prison before he leaves office. "If the contract you are considering is a good one, it will also be a good one three weeks from now when our administration will have an opportunity to review it," Lingle said in a letter faxed yesterday to Cayetano and state Attorney General Earl Anzai. [continues 330 words]
A Law Meant To Open Prison Space By Offering Rehabilitation To Certain Inmates Has Applied To Just 45 People So Far Only 45 inmates are eligible under a new law passed earlier this year that calls for probation and drug treatment for non-violent first-time drug offenders. Of the 45, 12 inmates -- including two women -- were released since June and three more await release as soon as slots at drug treatment programs become available. The Department of Public Safety drew up the 45 names earlier this year in response to the law, Act 161, and submitted them to the Hawaii Paroling Authority -- the agency that screens inmates and decides if and when they can be released. [continues 985 words]
I just wanted to let all of the camping enthusiasts on Maui know that if you plan to use the Kipahulu campground at Oheo, your every move will be watched by federal agents. Apparently all violent crimes in the rest of the country must have stopped, why else would federal agents dressed in black assault fatigues be dispatched to lurk in the woods of a popular Maui campsite. Many campers at Kipahulu the weekend of Oct. 27 were subjected to random, warrantless searches, and the threat of being flown to federal prison in Oahu merely because they looked like "potheads." [continues 92 words]
HONOLULU (AP) -- The state agency that oversees public housing was forced to forfeit nearly $500,000 that could have been used to hire anti-drug personnel because it did not spend the money in time, according to an agency spokesman. The Housing and Community Development Corp. of Hawaii failed to use the funds over the past two years because the agency was in the midst of ''hiring restrictions,'' said Bob Hall, a spokesman for the agency's executive director, Sharyn Miyashiro. [continues 345 words]
WAILUKU -- A judge ruled a new law requiring treatment instead of incarceration for first-time drug offenders didn't apply to a man with a previous robbery conviction, sentencing the defendant Thursday to a five-year prison term. But 2nd Circuit Judge Joseph Cardoza told Philip Acang he could still try to get help for his drug addiction while he is in prison through the Maui Drug Court. Once he is within 14 months of the end of his minimum term, Acang could apply to enter a Drug Court program for inmates. They begin their treatment in jail and continue when they are paroled. [continues 322 words]
Jon Kinimaka's Oct. 17 letter "More funding needed for state drug courts" highlights the success of Drug Court programs and the fact that court-supervised drug treatment, instead of incarceration, really does work. I myself am living proof that a serious drug offender who is given the proper tools can become a productive member within the community. I have been called "The Miracle Man" because, after 37 years of abusing drugs, I once died (overdosed) and came back to life. Now I am proud to say that I am a successful graduate of the Maui Drug Court's first graduating class. I am employed full-time, paying taxes, and have been clean and sober for over two years now. If not for the Maui Drug Court, Hawaii taxpayers would still be paying for my room and board while warehousing me in some Mainland prison for years, getting worse, sicker, with no treatment. [continues 72 words]
Editor: Thank you for printing the AP story, "Hawaii has worst crystal meth problem" in the U.S. and for mentioning that the Big Island has the worst of it in Hawaii. The Associated Press, U.S. Attorney Ed Kubo and you tell it like it is - almost. The worst human tragedy in Hawaii history did not "just happen." It was thought-up, debated, approved and caused by an artificial social policy known as the "marijuana eradication program." A program which continues this very day. It is a monumental failure and now I want to know exactly, specifically - who is responsible, who is accountable, and who is liable for the damage done by this taxpayer-funded program? We were forced to pay for this debacle and suffer the loss of civil liberties, for what? For turning pot smokers into ice smokers. What a screw-up. [continues 357 words]
They Offer Advice As Fourth Class Finishes Program WAILUKU -- The day after he graduated from the Maui Drug Court, Leslie Maeda did some of the same things he had done while going through the intensive treatment program for a year. He went to meetings of a support group. He called his sponsor. And he kept in touch with others working on staying drug-free and sober. "You continue doing what got you this far," said Maeda, who had felony drug charges against him dismissed when he became one of the program's first graduates Oct. 11, 2001. "It's an ongoing process." [continues 1358 words]
U.S. Attorney Ed Kubo's report to a presidential commission cited alarming statistics on methamphetamine use in Hawai'i. The judiciary has taken effective measures toward reducing recidivism to crime with the implementation of the Hawai'i drug courts, which divert felony drug offenders from incarceration into intense, court-supervised drug treatment requiring daily drug testing and counseling, monitored by a judge for up to 18 months. Judges use intermediate jail sanctions for program noncompliance and provide incentives for clients upon their success throughout the program. Offenders' criminal charges are dismissed upon successful completion. With only a 14 percent recidivism rate on a national average, drug courts are proven to be the most successful way to treat drug offenders. [continues 83 words]
Editor: If anyone cares to read the history of the drug war, it should be abundantly clear how such "statistics" as the "ice" statistic arise. They are made up by someone in political office to suit their own agenda. This is nothing new. It has been official U.S. government policy for the last 60 years, at least. Clifford Schaffer Agua Dulce [end]
Inside Hawaii
