FATHER WANTS DRUG DEALERS TO PAY

Bill Would Hold Peddlers Liable For Users' Habit

RALEIGH, N.C. - Illicit drug dealers should be liable for the spoiled
lives of drug users, a father of a dead addict told lawmakers Thursday.

Now, Keith Thompson, with the help of state Sen. Julia Boseman, has
proposed a bill that would allow families, employers, acquaintances
or even individual narcotic users to sue dealers for economic, mental
and physical damages. Under the bill, a dealer doesn't have to be
responsible for the the damages. Virtually any person or group - even
the state - could file suit against any convicted peddler.

"Drug dealers are parasites in our community," Thompson told a Senate
committee Thursday, introducing the bill.

Thompson said his daughter, Blaire, had struggled with a heroin
addiction for years. But after going 90 days without feeding her
habit in 2004, she began talking about quitting her job as a
kindergarten teacher to write a book about the danger of illegal drugs.

However, Blaire's dealer called one morning to offer another fix. She
overdosed on heroin that night. She was 26.

"Everyone that's an addict wants to get clean," Thompson said. "But
the dealers are relentless in keeping their customers."

Days after her death, Thompson confronted his daughter's dealer at
the man's home.

He was unable to convince local police to prosecute the man, who
still deals drugs today in Wilmington, Thompson said.

If lawmakers passed this bill, Thompson said the man he believes is
responsible for his daughter's death would be the first person he would sue.

"They know what they're doing is illegal, and they know the harm that
they're causing," Thompson said.

The dealers could be forced to pay for injuries, cost of treatment
and rehab, loss of productivity, emotional distress, or even loss of
enjoyment or companionship suffered by drug users or those in their community.

The American Civil Liberties Union of North Carolina opposes the
bill. In a letter to lawmakers, the organization said the measure was
unconstitutional because the dealer sued doesn't have to be the one
who causes the injury.

The group also argues that the lawsuits wouldn't be effective
deterrents and say it would be difficult to determine dealers' assets
since illegal drugs usually are purchased with cash.

More than a dozen other states have enacted similar laws, although
some, such as Wisconsin, must prove a connection between the dealer
and the victim.