REVAMP DRUG-OFFENDER LAWS TO EASE STATE PRISON CROWDING

Massachusetts' prison system is like an out-of-control carousel. In
2005, for example, 2,500 new inmates got on board just as 2,100
parolees stepped off and headed for home -- up from 1,300 in 1980.
Nowadays Massachusetts towns and cities are struggling to cope with
the special services needed by new parolees returning home each year.

America's lock-'em-up drug laws are keeping this merry-go-round
spinning faster and faster. Nationally, the portion of inmates
leaving state prisons after serving time for nonviolent drug offenses
has shot up from 11 percent in 1985 to 37 percent in 2005. Here is
how this trend plays out in Massachusetts.

Massachusetts prisons held only 3,000 men and women in 1980. By 2006
that number grew to 9,300.

Today Massachusetts' incarceration rate -- the number of state
prisoners per every 100,000 population -- is 241. In 1980 it was only
56.

While the enforcement of federal and state drug laws has not lowered
the availability or use of illegal drugs, those laws have done more
harm than good for drug users, taxpayers and local communities.
Instead of dealing with drug abuse as a health issue in education
and treatment centers, drug laws have sent thousands of otherwise
law-abiding citizens to prison. But prison time can backfire.

Life behind bars is an ideal environment for nonviolent inmates to
become socially alienated and to learn new criminal skills from other
inmates. Upon their release, many drug users are likely to pose a
greater risk to society than when they entered prison.

Massachusetts' prison merry-go-round would stop turning if not for
the generous contribution of more than $410 million each year from
state taxpayers.

And nationally it costs much more to enforce drug laws that don't do
what the lawmakers say they were intended to do. The National
Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws in Washington estimates
that U.S. taxpayers are spending more than $1 billion a year just to
lock up 33,600 state and 10,700 federal marijuana offenders. Most of
these people are peaceful, productive citizens. They do not belong
behind bars.

Once their prison phase ends, parolees face an uphill struggle as
they try to put their lives back together. Trouble finding jobs and a
place to live are common problems and force many ex-convicts to seek
help from local agencies.

But instead of fixing the root cause of this problem, federal and
state officials are turning to churches and social service agencies
to salvage their failed policies. As one New York correctional
officer remarked recently, "Our dump-'em-on-the-street with $40 is
not working. We need help."

Faith-based service grants from Uncle Sam are already being used by
communities to cope with newly released inmates. The Council of State
Governments, the National Association of Counties and the Urban
Institute are all addressing re-entry issues. And the push is on to
get United Way and Big Sister/Big Brother organizations involved.
Trouble is, these efforts address only a symptom of the problem, not
the problem itself.

What to do? About one-half of all U.S. inmates are nonviolent
offenders. Would it not make a lot more sense to solve the returning
prisoner crisis by drastically cutting the number of nonviolent
people cycled through Massachusetts' prisons and sent back to their
hometowns every year?

Policymakers in Boston need to stop sending nonviolent offenders to
prison and increase the use of non-prison punishments, including
treatment for drug abusers and support services for other non-violent
offenders.

This would drastically slow down Massachusetts' prison
merry-go-round, save taxpayers a lot of money and shrink by up to
one-half the number of ex-inmates headed back to local communities
each year.

Ronald Fraser, Ph.D., writes on public policy issues for the DKT
Liberty Project, a Washington-based civil liberties organization.