DA'S WAR ON DRUGS

To The Editor:

In the past number of months you have published several letters by persons
opposed to the "War on Drugs". All have indicated (in their opinion) the
war to be a failure. All seek drastic change in our nation's and state's
drug laws. The discerning reader might assume they want outright
legalization. They believe their argument has now gathered momentum
because Governor Pataki Has proposed changes to our State Drug Laws. The
argument goes that our state prisons are full of convicted drug offenders
who are there either because it is only their first offense or that they
simply do not "deserve" to be in prison.

There are may sides to failure, and to success, for that matter. Governor
Pataki's proposals are unwarranted and an unwise exercise of the
Executive's obligation to propose just and meaningful legislation for all
citizens of the State of New York. The State of New York, according to a
recent article in you paper (and if my recollection is correct), ranks
seventh in the nation of $17 billion dollars a year in public expenditure
for drug and alcohol treatment. Does this appear to be a failure by the
system to deal with the "War on Drugs?"

The fact is that the convicted drug offenders serving prison sentences in
our state prisons are there because they have "earned" their way in. Those
felons imprisoned as a result of their first and only conviction are there
because of two reasons. First, the facts of their particular cases
indicated they were heavily involved in illegal drug trafficking. Second,
their possession offense was of such a significant an amount that prison
was the only alternative available to stem the tide of damage to society
that would have been caused by the distribution of the illegal drug, which
they possessed. A distribution, and resulting consequent damage which
would have occurred, but for their apprehension, arrest, and successful
prosecution. Make no mistake about it, there is not a District Attorney's
Office in the State of New York which does not make full use of plea
bargaining. The truth is, that if the convicted drug felons in our state
(not just in our state prisons) were held to the highest offense they were
alleged to have committed, our state prison population would easily
double. New York State still works on a theory of rehabilitative
justice. Those convicted drug felons serving prison sentences are there
because efforts at rehabilitation have failed, leaving us only with the
option of prison to protect us from them.

Drug offenses in New York State cannot and must not be viewed as a problem
in and of itself. Drug offenders are almost always involved in other
crimes besides drug offenses. Violent crime is a direct and natural result
of illegal drug possession and selling. Illegal drug users commit crimes
of violence and theft to support their habit. Illegal drug sellers use
violence as a means of enforcement to protect their business territory, to
collect their illegal debts and intimidate witnesses into not testifying
against them.

What about our youth? It is the 16 to 25-year-old male age group that I
deal with on a most consistent basis. They commit burglaries, forgeries
and larcenies, not for the money to make a living, but for the means to buy
illegal drugs. Legalization or even decriminalizing drugs will not stop
them from committing the crimes which provide them with the funds to pay
for their habit. That's just one small piece of the issue of drugs and our
youth. I'm sure I need not delve any farther.

Every system of justice, including our drug laws can benefit from
improvements and fine tuning. It can be argued that those who say the "War
on Drugs" has failed and want to scrap our laws in favor of legalization
are either on drugs or looking to make money from drugs. I leave it to you
readers to decide.

I will join the other 61 District Attorneys of our State and oppose any
proposal by Governor Pataki or our State Legislature to decriminalize the
drug laws.

Jerome J. Richards
St. Lawrence Co. DA
Canton, NY