NEGOTIATIONS ON JAIL SHOULD BE SHELVED

Gov. Cayetano should agree with the incoming administration's request to
shelve negotiations to build a new jail because he shares the same vision
that the new administration and many residents of this state envision for
our brothers and sisters who are caught up in the cycle of drugs, crime and
prison.

Gov. Cayetano endorsed the implementation of the Hawai'i Drug Court program,
launched by Lt. Gov.-elect Duke Aiona in 1996. Gov. Cayetano also introduced
a law that is designed to provide treatment for first-time drug offenders.

These types of programs that divert drug offenders from incarceration will
have a significant impact on prison overcrowding.

The Maui Drug Court's implementation of the state's first
early-release/reintegration program for sentenced offenders will reduce the
recidivism rate for parole violators, who represent the fastest-growing
inmate population. Funding to expand such programs throughout the state will
lesson the need to build prisons. Federal recognition will change the
disproportional representation of Hawaiians in prison.

If this is part of the new administration's vision, such a request should be
honored.

Jon Kinimaka

Lahaina, Maui