TREAT CRACK ADDICTS

In a woefully shortsighted opinion by Craig Morford, he stated as
acting deputy U.S. attorney general that "we believe communities are
safer when violent, convicted criminals are imprisoned for the full
duration of their sentences" ("Crack crooks are behind bars for a
reason," @issue, Feb. 29).

My question is, "And then what?" As he acknowledged, "re-entry
programs are not equipped to deal with this many offenders." The more
intelligent and responsible action would be to devise, fund and equip
re-entry programs so they are able to effectively deal with a large
number of people who need substance-abuse counseling, not
imprisonment. To say that we can't handle it, so we'll just lock them
up and unleash them in 20 years is an abdication of responsibility.
Morford advocates dumping today's untreated addicts on tomorrow's
innocent citizens. What a tragedy.

Lisa Bashir,

Loganville