DEALERS OF CLUB DRUGS NOW FACE HARD TIME

Ryan Approves Tougher Penalties

SPRINGFIELD -- Gov. George Ryan signed legislation Monday mandating prison
time for those convicted of selling Ecstasy and other club drugs, making
Illinois one of the first states in the nation to make penalties for such
drugs the same as for heroin and cocaine.

"This bill strengthens the penalties for people who give drugs to our
kids," Ryan said. "It's one that is overdue, and one that I hope will serve
notice to dealers--that you will be punished severely if you hurt children
with your drugs."

Ryan, a former pharmacist, called Ecstasy a "dangerous drug that kills."

House Minority Leader Lee Daniels (R-Elmhurst), the chief sponsor of the
proposal, maintained the new law will "give law enforcement officials the
wherewithal to put Ecstasy pushers behind bars."

Tougher penalties will not only deter sales, but might save lives, said
DuPage County State's Atty. Joe Birkett, noting the growing number of
deaths of young people from the use of Ecstasy or similar drugs.

The new penalties, which take effect Jan. 1, make the crimes of dealing or
distributing as few as 15 Ecstasy pills a Class X offense punishable by a
minimum 6 years in prison. The current law can be a felony, depending on
the number of pills distributed, but allowed those convicted to be
sentenced only to probation without serving a day behind bars, officials said.

Sen. Kirk Dillard (R-Hinsdale), the Senate sponsor, said the new law makes
Illinois "clearly the frontrunner nationwide on cracking down on what is a
killer drug, Ecstasy, which is basically running pretty rampant."

"People think that because there's a cutesy name like Ecstasy that the drug
somehow is not as dangerous as heroin, cocaine and LSD, but the number of
deaths recently show it absolutely is as dangerous," Dillard said.

The drug is popular at concerts and rave parties.

In other action, Ryan signed a bill into law that would allow highway and
tollway maintainers a chance to retire 10 to 15 years earlier than under
the regular state pension system.

He signed the proposal at a highway maintenance facility before a rousing
crowd of hundreds of Teamsters.

The change gives the workers a pension equal to other state workers, such
as state troopers, who have had enhanced pension benefits because of the
danger of their jobs.

Since 1951, 170 highway maintainers have been killed on the job--a death
rate many times higher than that of the state police. In the last two years
alone, slightly more than 600 maintainers have been injured.

The new law would allow a maintenance worker who is 50 years old with 25
years of service or 55 years old with 20 years of service to retire with
full pension benefits.

Ryan said the new law "will give some of Illinois' hardest workers the
option to retire earlier and with a larger benefit."