DRUG-TREATMENT MONEY NEEDED OUTSIDE PRISONS

Re: Jan. 6 news article, "Clinton proposes $215 million to test, treat
inmates for drugs."

Anyone who has known someone with a drug problem and seen them trying
to get help in San Antonio knows the frustration of discovering that
there are an insufficient number of beds in the few treatment
facilities available.

Trying to keep an addict drug-free until space in a treatment facility
is available is usually an exercise in futility. More treatment
facilities are needed, and this means more tax dollars must be spent.

However, the article states that $63 million is earmarked for state
prisons "to provide long-term treatment and intensive supervision for
prisoners . . ." This portion of President Clinton's proposal is
unnecessary, a waste of money and misdirects attention from the people
who should be held accountable.

The real problem with setting up another program to treat prisoners is
that the drug problem in prison could be greatly reduced or eliminated
if we held people accountable.

With the number of prison guards we have and with the use of TV
cameras, drug-sniffing dogs, drug-testing labs and so on, it is hard
to believe that stopping prisoners from using drugs is a problem that
can only be dealt with by hiring more prison counselors to provide
treatment.

Shouldn't we be asking the wardens why they cannot do their jobs? When
was the last time you saw a warden on television explaining why
someone escaped from his prison and what his plans were to prevent it
from recurring? Is it unreasonable to expect people to earn their salaries?

Duane E. Solley