DRUG TREATMENT PROGRAMS CUT CRIME

Gov. Quinn has threatened to eliminate funding for drug treatment and
wipe out two extraordinarily successful drug treatment prisons,
releasing 2,200 offenders (Gov. Quinn paints "doomsday" budget
picture, May 18).

Some are not taking the governor's threats seriously. I am.

The elimination of drug treatment would be a disastrous move. For
families who need help for loved ones, the absence of treatment is
tragic. For communities beset by drug use and crime, the absence of
treatment is dangerous.

Offenders mandated to community-based drug treatment are a third less
likely than other probationers to re-offend. Without treatment in the
community, there will be more crime.

Offenders who go through the Sheridan or Southwest Illinois drug
treatment prisons are 40 percent less likely to return to prison than
those who didn't get these services. Without dedicated drug treatment
prisons, there will be more crime as 2,200 offenders return to local
communities.

In this economy, it would be foolhardy to cut the very services that
make our communities safer. These cuts would cause Illinois to lose
millions of dollars in federal matching funds.

The governor's "doomsday" budget proposal cannot be taken lightly.

Without treatment, the real doomsday will occur when our communities
face an explosion in drug-related crime.

Pamela F. Rodriguez,

executive vice president,

TASC, Inc.