PANEL SHARES IDEAS ABOUT ILLEGAL DRUGS

ACLU Board Member, City Officials Hold Debate On Issue Of Legalizing

Recreational drugs should be legal, lawyer Gerald Finkel told a
College of Charleston audience Tuesday evening during a panel
discussion on that topic.

Finkel, a board member of the S.C. chapter of the American Civil
Liberties Union, said the ACLU believes bothering people about
marijuana and cocaine is a violation of privacy.

His position got the most applause from the 250 people - mostly
college students - in the audience at Physicians Auditorium.

Charleston County Sheriff Al Cannon disagreed.

"You don't help the problem by legalizing drugs," he said.

Cannon also said deputies don't go out of their way to arrest
recreational drug users and that drugs are usually found when someone
is arrested for another crime.

Legalizing drugs would only make things worse, said Charleston City
Council member Tim Scott. He also accused police of unfairly
targeting people in minority neighborhoods.

Cannon responded that deputies only pat down people in neighborhoods
where residents complain and ask for help in getting rid of dealers.

Council member Cindy Floyd said she does not believe drugs should be
legalized but that more money should be spent on treatment programs
instead of prisons filled by the government's failed "war on drugs."

Dr. William Boggan of the Medical University of South Carolina's
Center for Drug and Alcohol Programs said people vary widely in how
they react to various drugs.

He called for more research money to tailor treatment to individuals.

Everyone agreed that alcohol and cigarettes, even though legal, hurt
society more than marijuana. But Americans lack the willpower to
outlaw them, Cannon said.

That's probably because most people need some kind of chemical
support to get through life, observed College of Charleston President
Alex Sanders, who served as moderator.