DOWNEY'S PRISON TERM FOR DRUGS (1 of 2)

Re "Actor Downey Doing Hard Time for an Illness," Nov. 3:

I agree with Mike Downey's position opposing the incarceration of drug
addicts.

However, I object to his using Robert Downey Jr. as his poster boy. He does
not so much as acknowledge the poor and unknown who constitute the
overwhelming majority of those who find themselves in prison for drug use.
Most of those have not been given the special considerations that Downey
Jr. received.

One's acting ability, moneyed connections and charm should not determine
incarceration or freedom. I find Mike Downey's pandering to celebrity
offensive.

Mona Davis, Cypress

When are we as a so-called civilized society going to realize that it is
counterproductive to spend billions of dollars to build more and more
prisons to house people who are sick?

It would be much less expensive and more beneficial to society and addicted
individuals to provide adequate treatment facilities. Maybe with the money
that is saved we could even provide decent medical care for those unable to
afford it.

Morris Kushner, Santa Monica