SEND DRUG ADDICTS TO TREATMENT - NOT PRISON

On March 3, the Democrat and Chronicle reported on Mayor William
Johnson's "ultimatum" to state leaders about the need for additional
school funding. But where do we find more money to address the
pressing needs facing so many school districts? Let's look at
reforming state drug laws.

With their long minimum sentences, the Rockefeller drug laws have been
putting drug dealers and addicts behind bars since 1973. While the
law's intent may be politically good, the Gleason Center for State
Policy reveals alarming statistics that point to the fiscal and social
shortcomings of the law.

New York spends $2.3 billion annually on corrections, the fourth
highest of any state, even as drug-related crime rates have been
dropping since 1995. Between 1988 and 1998, New York increased
spending on corrections by $761 million, while decreasing spending on
the State University of New York by $615 million. The adverse effect
of our government's preoccupation with punishment over education is
taking its toll on the economy.

There are about 18,300 drug offenders incarcerated in New York
prisons, 93 percent of whom are black or Latino, at an annual cost of
$30,500 each. A 1997 study by Rand's Drug Policy Research Center
reveals that treatment is 15 times more effective than mandatory
minimum sentencing at curbing more serious crime.

If New York adopts this common-sense attitude, the savings could be
better spent on programs such as Head Start, which focuses on families
in needy school districts.

Strict zero-tolerance drug policies also strengthen the stereotypes
that many people, including teachers, have about inner-city attitudes
toward education. Many blame this apparent apathy on poor family
values, but this ignores the reality of the situation. According to
statistics from The Sentencing Project, arrest rates of black men in
the 24-29 age group quadrupled from 1986 to 1996. Children raised in
these broken families suffer poor self-esteem and social
stigmatization, and they often have problems developing healthy
emotional connections to secondary caregivers.

The tragedy of zero-tolerance drug policies has created a culture more
adept at tearing apart families over trivial drug charges than
treating the social causes behind the problem. These crimes are the
result of addiction. If the answer is stringent drug laws, why are an
estimated 1 million New Yorkers using drugs, and why are 500,000 of
them addicts or abusers?

Treatment and empathy, not punishment, is the answer. Millions of
children are counting on it.