GOVERNOR'S NEW GROUP AGREES WAR ON DRUGS ISN'T WORKING

SANTA FE - After a year of criticizing the nation's war on drugs, Gov. Gary
Johnson said it is time to start considering new drug policies in New Mexico.

Johnson has created a new Drug Policy Advisory Group, made up mainly of New
Mexico leaders, to study and recommend drug strategies he can enact or take
to the Legislature to consider when it meets in January.

Johnson said he isn't expecting the group to back his stance on legalizing
marijuana -- a position that has put the Republican governor in the
national spotlight but alienated him from many people who do not agree with
his stance on the issue.

"But hey, let's try and get to some bottom-line results," Johnson said,
referring to what he calls a "harm-reduction" strategy of limiting the
damages that result from drug-abuse.

The advisory group, headed by retired state District Court Judge Woody
Smith, will explore a number of issues surrounding the drug debate. The
group met for the first time last week.

Smith said Thursday that every member of the group agreed immediately on at
least one thing: The war on drugs and its associated slogans like "Just Say
No" are not working.

"I think our goal is to try to make something better out of a bad
situation," Smith said. "That's how I look at it.

"We all know how much money we're spending, the resources we're wasting on
the war on drugs. Maybe we'll find some suggestion for legislation that, in
the end, will make it better."

Johnson kicked off the group's brainstorming by providing a list of issues
for consideration:
"Can we actually, in New Mexico, perhaps point to fewer overdose deaths?"
"Can we point to less disease being spread by intravenous drug use? I'm
talking about AIDS, Hepatitis C."
"Can we statistically look at less driving accidents under the influence of
drugs and alcohol?"
"Can we point, years from now, to less people being incarcerated for
nonviolent drug offenses?"
"Can we look to be spending more on rehabilitation for those who want it
than what we are today with similar decreases on prison spending?"

In an interview Thursday, Johnson said his bottom-line question for the
advisory group is: "Can we point to less harm done by illegal drugs in our
society?"

Mayor Jim Baca, a member of the group, said he will keep an open mind as he
studies and considers alternatives to current drug policies that focus on
stiff penalties for drug-related crimes.

"I'm going to participate as much as I can," Baca said. "I think it's good
to get into a logical debate about it. I really don't know what we'll come
up with. All I know is, things don't work now and something different has
to be done."