TREATING THE DRUG WAR'S WOUNDED

Last week California voters overwhelmingly passed an initiative,
Proposition 36, that will require treatment instead of jail time for
most first- and second-time drug offenders.

Approved by 61 percent of voters, the referendum was not supported by
most of the state's elected officials and law enforcers.

Bob Zimmerman, who headed the campaign in support of the initiative,
said the numbers show that Californians are ready for a new approach
in dealing with the scourge of illegal drugs and that "voters were fed
up with all the money that's been wasted, all the lives that are
wasted on the drug war."

Arizona passed a similar measure last year, and at least 40 states
have set up drug courts to steer offenders toward treatment instead of
jail.

It's true, as many drug war critics have pointed out, that drug
treatment is cheaper than incarceration. Treatment costs about $4,000
a year per person, while a year in prison costs about $20,000.

Research also shows, however, that treatment is no panacea for the
drug problem. Many people who enter treatment go back to drugs, some
dropping out before finishing their program. The recidivism rate for
hard-core addicts is very high, even for those who can afford the
best, as baseball's Darryl Strawberry and actor Robert Downey Jr. have
proved. The statistics also underscore the need for early
intervention.

Those cases indicate that the drug war cannot be won solely by
treating the wounded. There has to be a law enforcement component with
it. Drug war critics often propose a false and limited choice to the
public of treatment vs. punishment. In reality, the two work best
together, because weakening enforcement mechanisms will lead to fewer
individuals seeking and receiving drug treatment.

California will soon embark on a noble experiment. The voters have
decided they are willing to make the criminal justice system the
primary source of drug treatment in the state to the tune of $120
million a year. The nation should watch what happens there, keeping in
mind that it is enforcement of drug laws that will lead offenders to
treatment.

It's worth a try. Perhaps it will tell us if compulsory treatment is
as effective as the voluntary kind.