DRUG SENTENCING DEPARTURES UNDER STUDY

Most drug offenders in Minnesota are receiving criminal sentences far
different from -- and usually more lenient than -- those prescribed by the
state's sentencing guidelines, a House committee was told Tuesday.

"The exceptions are swallowing up the rule," state Corrections Commissioner
Sheryl Ramstad Hvass told the House Crime Prevention Committee.

Of 632 drug offenders facing possible prison terms under the sentencing
guidelines in 1999, 246 got only local jail time or probation. An
additional 205 drug offenders got prison sentences shorter than what
guidelines call for.

Only 29 got longer sentences.

"It's our highest departure rate" for any crime, said Ramstad Hvass, who
also is chairwoman of the Minnesota Sentencing Guidelines Commission.

Other crimes that carry high rates of sentencing departure are assault with
a deadly weapon and incest, but the commission is concentrating on drug
cases, which are much more numerous. "We're trying to look at what future
changes might be in order," Ramstad Hvass said.

For about a year, a commission subcommittee has been studying ways to focus
drug sentencing policy more on severe punishment for the most dangerous
offenders and on more nonprison and treatment options for nonviolent
addicts. Judge Roger Klaphake of the Minnesota Court of Appeals heads the
subcommittee, which includes prosecutors, defense attorneys, treatment
professionals and others.

No conclusions have been reached and no public hearings are planned until
at least the summer, but the commission reported several "observations" to
the committee Tuesday:

Current drug laws are "too narrowly defined" by the amount of drugs
possessed or sold by the offender. Unspecified other factors should be
considered, the report said.

Racial minority groups are "dramatically overrepresented" among convicted
drug offenders, although no statistics were offered.

Practices of drug courts in Hennepin and Ramsey counties, which Ramstad
Hvass said emphasize treatment, follow-up and swift consequences, should be
considered for integration into the sentencing guidelines.

"Flexibility is needed for the courts to pronounce the most appropriate
sentence that will best protect the community."

According to a 1998 study, in more than half of 449 downward departures
reviewed that year, drug offenders' sentences were based on a plea bargain,
a prosecutor's recommendation or the prosecutor's acquiescence.

With overview by the Legislature, the commission sets recommended sentences
for all felonies in Minnesota based on the severity of the crime and the
offender's prior record. Judges may depart from the guidelines, either up
or down, but must submit their reasons for doing so in writing to the
commission.

In the past, the commission's efforts to scale back drug sentencing
guidelines have been rebuffed by prosecutors and the Legislature. This
time, Ramstad Hvass said, the commission wants to act as a catalyst for
consensus rather than an advocate for politically unpopular changes.

The commission subcommittee has enlisted help from the Vera Institute of
Justice, based in New York, to consider drug-sentencing changes in other
states that Ramstad Hvass characterized as "progressive." It also has
surveyed judges and others in the Minnesota criminal justice system for
their opinions.

"The present sentencing policies are draconian and politically
opportunistic," one unidentified judge responded to the survey, according
to a summary released by the commission. "The 'war on drugs' is basically a
method to ensure the election and reelection of those without conscience or
common sense to public office. It is also a detriment to attacking chemical
addiction inasmuch as it diverts needed money for treatment to prosecution
and prisons."

Pressure for change in drug sentencing has increased as drug cases have
grown from 15 percent of all Minnesota felony cases in 1981 to 23 percent
in 1999. Despite the widespread sentencing departures, drug offenders now
make up 16 percent of Minnesota's 6,200 prison inmates, outnumbered only by
murderers and sex offenders.