AN ILLEGAL DRUG LESSON

I was saddened, but not shocked, to read your June 30 story ("Drug cops'
shock waves") about corruption in the Davidson County Sheriff's Office. It
is a familiar story, and not a new one.

The corruption is happening here and abroad. It happened in the 1920s and
'30s as well, when the illegal drug was alcohol. The promise of outrageous
profits from the sale of illegal drugs has long undermined many public
officials' mission to uphold the law.

The officers in Davidson County were profiting from the War on Drugs
illegally. Many police departments and prosecutors' offices are profiting
from it legally through asset forfeiture.

Under current law the government can seize property believed to be
connected with the sale of illicit drugs without a conviction or even a
criminal charge. California Superior Court Judge James P. Gray calls civil
asset forfeiture laws "one of the largest and most invasive challenges to
our Bill of Rights protections."

The War on Drugs has failed. Erosion of civil liberties and of public trust
in law enforcement are just two illustrations of this failure. We must make
fundamental changes in our approach to drug use. Our elected officials must
stop hiding behind sound bites about being tough on crime. It is time for
them to tackle this issue in all of its complexity. And it is time for us
as voters to demand that they do so. There have been enough casualties already.

Laurie McDonald

Chapel Hill