IN NEEDLE VOTE, FACTS CARRY DAY OVER IDEOLOGY

Here's something you don't see every day: politicians, after studying
the facts, changing their minds - and even admitting it. In public.

In reviewing the record of a nearly three-year experiment with a
needle-exchange program for drug addicts and deciding whether to make
it permanent, several of the Shasta County supervisors noted that they
still have deep misgivings about the idea - but they voted for it. The
program was extended by a 4-1 vote.

The qualms are understandable. On its face, the needle exchange
amounts to helping heroin and methamphetamine abusers get a fix.
Having a syringe without a prescription is against the law in
California, so in a sense, the county is supplying illegal drug
paraphernalia to junkies.

But that's not all it does. The needle exchange also collects used
syringes. That way, the dirty, potentially disease-carrying needles
are not discarded in parks where curious children can play with them.
They're not tossed in the trash where janitors or solid-waste workers
risk an accidental stick. They're not passed around - along with
life-threatening viruses - among drug users.

The county program has a reasonable record of success over the past
two and a half years. Figures presented Tuesday by Dr. Andrew Deckert,
the county's health officer, show the number of shared needles is down
and the number of users screened for HIV and hepatitis and referred to
drug treatment is up. (There's not a great record of successful
treatment, but that is the county's next target.)

Deckert added that Redding police say they've seen no sign of
increased IV drug use, while parks and solid-waste workers report
seeing fewer improperly discarded syringes.

In brief, the program is not increasing drug use but is helping curb
the spread of disease - including ailments whose treatment puts vast
costs on taxpayer-funded medical programs.

Faced with those figures, Supervisor Les Baugh, who was a candidate
for the board in 2006 when the pilot program started, noted that he'd
have voted against it originally but was swayed by the record.
Supervisor Leonard Moty, a former career lawman, said the needle
exchange ran counter to all his law-enforcement instincts - but it
appeared to work, not least in keeping officers safer from accidental
needle sticks, so he'd support it.

Their open-minded approach is a contrast with Supervisor Linda
Hartman's dogmatism. She acknowledged the program's reported health
benefits, but said she still opposed the needle exchange because ...
well, just because.

This isn't a black-and-white issue. It's a fuzzy line between helping
addicts and enabling them. But the best way to make hard calls is to
focus on the facts instead of falling back on knee-jerk sloganeering,
as so many politicians - especially in Sacramento - are wont to do.

We could use a little more of the level-headed pragmatism shown by the
county supervisors.

Our view: It's an all too rare experience to see political leaders
weigh evidence and - shocker! - change their minds.