MASS. DA'S SUE OVER SOROS-BACKED DRUG MEASURE

BOSTON (Reuters) - Six Massachusetts district attorneys said on Tuesday
they filed a lawsuit seeking to block a ballot initiative backed by
billionaire George Soros that would change the way state law enforcement
deals with drug offenders.

The measure, known as Petition P, would favor treatment for drug offenders
over incarceration and would make it harder for police to seize money from
suspected drug dealers.

The district attorneys said the measure would make it harder to fight drug
trafficking and tougher to put drug dealers in prison. They also allege
that Massachusetts Attorney General Thomas Reilly, who has to certify that
ballot measures meet state requirements, erred in this case.

``It allows drug dealers to escape punishment, even multiple offenders, and
it allows drug dealers to keep their assets,'' said Plymouth County
District Attorney Michael Sullivan. ``Who's going to benefit from this? No
question, drug dealers are going to benefit from this measure,'' he said.

Since Reilly has already certified the initiative as acceptable for the
ballot in November, the district attorneys have filed suit against him in
Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, saying the measure contravenes the
state's constitution and illegally overrides the legislature's powers.

Supporters of the measure said it will allow judges to send fewer low-level
drug offenders to jail, freeing up room for violent criminals, who often
face no mandatory jail terms.

The ballot measure would require the civil equivalent of a guilty verdict
before forcing forfeiture of property, instead of an easier-to-obtain
probable cause ruling.

It would mandate complete public records of all money or property
forfeitures, direct forfeited proceeds to a drug treatment trust fund
instead of to local law enforcement and place forfeited money and property
under the control of legislators.

It would also make existing drug treatment plans more accessible to accused
drug defendants certified as drug dependent or at risk for such dependency
and allow judges to sentence low-level, first- and second-time drug
offenders to treatment programs instead of the current mandatory jail time.

``This (measure) will tighten Massachusetts drug policy and make it more
effective by allowing judges to allow some drug offenders to get
treatment,'' said Rob Stewart of the Coalition for Fair Treatment.

He said the district attorneys were suing because they had failed to
prevent Reilly from certifying the measure and saw no other way to stop
voters from having their say.

``This is a thirteenth-hour attempt to undermine the democratic process,''
Stewart said.

The attorneys said Soros is one of three out-of-state backers who have
contributed ``hundreds of thousands of dollars'' to pay for gathering
signatures needed to get the measure on the ballot.

The others are University of Phoenix founder John Sperling and Progressive
Corp. Chief Executive Peter Lewis, they said.

A spokesman for Soros said he was out of the country and could not be
reached for comment. No one at Sperling's office could be reached for
comment, and a spokeswoman for Progressive declined to comment.