FOOLHARDY ROCKEFELLER DRUG LAWS DESTROY LIVES

The burden imposed on New York taxpayers by the Rockefeller Drug Laws grows
each year. While Albany debates reform, states throughout the country have
introduced alternatives to incarceration. A study conducted by the Rand
Corporation found that every additional dollar invested in substance-abuse
treatment saves taxpayers $7.48 in societal costs. There is far more at
stake than tax dollars. The drug war is not the promoter of family values
that some would have us believe. Children of inmates are at risk of
educational failure, joblessness, addiction and delinquency. Not only do the
children lose out, but society as a whole does too.

Incarcerating nonviolent drug offenders alongside hardened criminals is the
equivalent of providing them with a taxpayer-funded education in criminal
behavior. Turning drug users into unemployable ex-cons is a senseless waste
of tax dollars.

It's time to declare peace in the failed drug war and begin treating all
substance abuse, legal or otherwise, as the public health problem it is.
Destroying the futures and families of citizens who make unhealthy choices
doesn't benefit anyone. Drug abuse is bad, but the drug war is worse.

ROBERT SHARPE, MPA

Policy Analyst

Common Sense for Drug Policy

Washington, DC