CLEVELAND RELAXES POLICY ON DRUG ARRESTS WITH TRACE AMOUNTS

Trace Amounts Now Bring Misdemeanors

People busted with drug residue in pipes and syringes in Cleveland
are no longer automatically charged as felons, bringing the city's
policies in line with other urban areas throughout the state.

Until two weeks ago, drug abusers faced felony possession charges if
caught with trace amounts of drugs in a crack pipe or heroin
syringe. They now face misdemeanor charges, which allows them to
seek treatment through the Greater Cleveland Drug Court.

City officials announced the policy change in November, but it took
about four months to implement it because the courts and
prosecutor's office had to prepare for the change.

The goal of switching from felonies to misdemeanors is to get
addicts treatment without saddling them with a felony that could
hamper them in turning their lives around, Mayor Frank Jackson said.

With treatment, the offenders are more likely to kick the habit and
less likely to commit more crimes, Jackson said.

"It will greatly reduce the number of crimes committed," the mayor said.

People will still be accountable if they fail to take advantage of
the treatment options, he said. The new protocol will not provide a
free pass to criminals, he warned, and police will still
aggressively pursue drug arrests.

On the first offense, a user will be charged with having drug
paraphernalia, a second-degree misdemeanor. A second offense will be
charged as a first-degree misdemeanor. Defendants charged with
either of these offenses could be eligible to have their cases
diverted to drug court.

A third arrest will be a felony offense, which would send the case
to Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court for a drug-abuse charge.

Cleveland is the last big city in Ohio to reduce drug-paraphernalia
cases to misdemeanors. Community activists argued for years that
similar cases from the suburbs are charged as misdemeanors, leading
to inequity in how justice is delivered.

People addicted to drugs or caught in the drug trade now have a
chance to redeem themselves without the burden of a felony, said
Charles See, director of the Community Re-Entry Program at the
Lutheran Metropolitan Ministry in Cleveland.

"They will be able to turn their lives around," See said. "It's a
very good thing."