COUNTY PRISONERS WON'T BE BLOWING SMOKE MUCH LONGER

SMOKE A cigarette in a bar, go to jail? Sorry, Marlboro Man, but after
Jan. 1, you won't be able to smoke there, either. As Santa Clara
County jails chief Timothy Ryan told San Jose Rotarians this week, as
of Jan. 1 he plans to make cigarettes off-limits in the local lockups.
Ryan acknowledged that might turn the cigs into valuable items of
barter or make them a hot commodity for smuggling behind bars. ``But
it may get the inmates thinking more about cigarettes than about other
drugs,'' Ryan said, ``so there may be a trade-off.''

Checked-by: Patrick Henry