RESIDENTS SAY COUNTRY LOSING WAR ON DRUGS

Many Amarillo residents feel the war on drugs isn't working, or isn't
working like it should.

"I think there should be more of a rehabilitative focus when dealing
with defendants rather than a punitive focus," said David Isern, a
criminal defense lawyer.

But not everyone agreed with him.

"I think they should be much harder on drug offenders," said Tiffany
Coffman. "Especially with repeat offenders."

Mary-Jeanne Kreek, professor and head of the Laboratory on the Biology
of Addictive Diseases at Rockefeller University in New York, agreed that
more treatment is a necessity.

"We know we can take hardened criminals who are long-term heroin
addicts, and get them into effective treatments, and they become
taxpayers. And that's terrific," Kreek said.

Kreek was the guest speaker at the 2001 Marsh Lectureship on Wednesday
at the Texas Tech Medical Center.

Damein Miller said the war on drugs has worked to a degree.

"People, in my opinion, are a lot more aware of the consequences," he
said. This makes them less likely to sell or buy drugs, he said.

Marijuana, however, should be legalized, he said, and tax dollars are
being wasted to punish users of marijuana.

"If they heavily taxed (marijuana), I think everyone would win in that
situation," Miller said.

Rosendo Amador agreed.

"It's just wasting taxpayer money on a victimless crime," he said.

By legalizing marijuana, he said, many people would be kept out of jail.
Harder drugs, however, should remain illegal.

Other residents such as C.E. Roof said the way to deal with drugs like
marijuana is to treat it like alcohol. The government should set up
state control boards and tax it heavily.

Kreek, however, said legalizing drugs would just make them more
available to those who are genetically predisposed to become addicted.

Many agreed with Kreek and Isern that therapy is the solution.

"I believe the war on drugs isn't working," said Donald Mincey. He said
more therapy programs are needed instead of incarceration.

By putting some users in jail, children are deprived of parents and
families are deprived of providers, he said.

Others think the war on drugs is focused in the wrong place.

"I think the war on drugs is focused on minority people," said Sheldon
Crain. Drug raids usually happen in lower-class neighborhoods, when
drugs are being made and sold in wealthier parts of cities, he said.

The war on drugs should also be focused more on the producers, he said.
Action should be taken against the drug fields in Colombia along with
other producers, Crain said.

Crain said some people who sell drugs are just desperate to make ends
meet. While it's wrong, desperate times can lead people to take
desperate measures, he said.

"You can take the richest man, put him on the street, and he'll do what
he can to survive," he said.