A PASS FOR PUSHERS

The well-financed advocates of Question 8 portray it as a progressive
measure to reduce drug crime by making treatment more readily available to
addicts.

If that were all the ballot initiative would do, we likely would be among
its supporters. Almost certainly it also would be backed by many of the
community groups and law enforcement agencies that vehemently oppose it.

But Question 8 is anything but a compassionate call for more drug
treatment. Rather, it is part of a nationwide campaign for drug
legalization, led and funded by millionaires George Soros, Peter Lewis and
John Sperling.

Much mischief has been written into this convoluted ballot question, which
fills almost two pages of fine print in the state's voter information guide.

In keeping with the veiled drug-legalization agenda, the measure would open
a giant escape hatch for defendants, including repeat offenders, charged
with possessing, manufacturing or distributing controlled substances and
other drug crimes.

Such defendants could secure a dismissal of charges by persuading a judge
they were drug dependent -- or even at risk of becoming drug dependent --
and entering a court-monitored treatment program.

The loophole would be available to dealers caught trafficking as much as 28
grams of cocaine, returning to the streets neighborhood pushers who are
responsible for much of the spread of illegal drug use. Such defendants
would avoid fines, jail time and even penalties for dealers who carry guns.

William Breault, chairman of the Main South Alliance for Public Safety in
Worcester, aptly called Question 8 "window dressing for ... an attempt to
derail current, effective drug laws using treatment as the 'hook'."

While abetting traffickers, the initiative would undercut anti-drug efforts
of law enforcement agencies. It would rewrite the criminal forfeiture laws,
drying up funding that is vital in complex investigations targeting illicit
drug distribution networks.

We believe treatment for addicts must play an integral role in efforts to
curtail the scourge of illegal drugs.

But a policy that hobbles anti-drug enforcement while giving street pushers
a free pass -- the model proposed in the initiative petition -- would be a
recipe for disaster.

Vote "no" on Question 8.