NEW DRUG POLICY LIKELY ON BALLOT

COLUMBUS - Backers of a proposal that would require judges to impose
treatment instead of jail for first- and second-time nonviolent drug
offenders likely have collected enough signatures to ensure a spot on the
Nov. 5 ballot, Secretary of State Kenneth Blackwell's office said Friday.

Of the 765,737 signatures that the Ohio Campaign for New Drug Policies
submitted on Aug. 7, there were 418,200 valid signatures of Ohio voters,
Mr. Blackwell's office said. The backers needed 335,422, or 10 percent of
the vote in the 1998 election for governor, to qualify.

The issue's status won't become official until Mr. Blackwell certifies the
statewide ballot next week, spokesman Carlo LoParo said.

The constitutional amendment would require judges to impose treatment
instead of prison for first- and second-time nonviolent drug offenders who
request it. Judges can now order treatment, but retain the option of prison
time.

Backers say the amendment will treat inmates whose only crime is using
drugs, and the state will save money by keeping them out of prison. Ohioans
Against Unsafe Drug Laws, a group opposed to the issue, says it will
undermine the work of Ohio's drug-court system and put felons out on the street.