THE COSTS OF THE DRUG WAR PILE UP - AND NOT JUST IN DOLLARS

Like a weed that thrives in drought, the drug war continues to grow in
Illinois.

The state is facing a $1.2 billion budget deficit, but legislators are
supporting increased funding for drug prohibition.

Last week, Illinois state Senate members approved a measure to increase
penalties for possession of small amounts of heroin. The legislation calls
for felony possession of a single gram of heroin to be punished with up to
15 years in prison. House members had already approved the bill, so now it
goes to the governor.

A single senator voted against the bill, citing concerns about prison
crowding, already a problem in the state.

Other legislators think it's a good idea. The logic is impeccable. Just ask
Sen. David Sullivan, the sponsor of the plan.

"We are trying to take away the tactical advantage of selling heroin,"
Sullivan said. "This is a logical step of bringing penalties for heroin in
line with cocaine."

After decades of drug war, one might think that Sen. Sullivan could
understand that new pools of dealers and drugs always fill any tiny hole
that might be caused by tougher penalties. But when the state's just a
little over a billion in the red, why consider the actual effects of
legislation?

Maybe Sullivan will do just that when there's a real budget crisis - say a
$2 billion deficit.

That same principle must have been at play last month when the House
approved a bill that would limit time for good behavior for some convicted
marijuana growers. The cost of the bill was estimated at $3.3 million per
year. Could there be a better place in the state budget for a few million
dollars?

Gov. George Ryan recently recognized that punishing non-violent drug
offenders may not be the most fiscally wise policy. Ryan proposed the early
release of some non-violent prisoners, in hopes of reducing prison costs.

Of course, former drug-seller Ryan (he was a pharmacist) is a lame duck.
Perpetually hounded by allegations of corruption, he dared not run for a
second term. Now Ryan has little to lose by occasionally stating the
obvious. It wasn't always so.

Back when he was still theoretically viable for a second term, Ryan vetoed
not one, but two bills that would have allowed the study of hemp as a crop
in Illinois. Now that Ryan's actually talking some sense on drug policy,
other politicians don't want to hear it. Cook County State's Attorney
Richard Devine called Ryan's early release plan "reprehensible."

What's really reprehensible is what the drug war has done to Illinois and
its prison system. In the Land of Lincoln, African-Americans comprise 90
percent of drug offenders admitted into prison. A black man is 57 times
more likely to be sent to prison on drug charges than a white man, despite
similar rates of use between races.

Similar racial disparities exist in other state prison systems, but
according to Human Rights Watch, Illinois leads the nation in rates of
disparity. The recent heroin legislation can only make the gap wider.

The budget crisis offers a perfect chance for legislators to quietly back
away from decades of terrible prohibitionist policy. It's a shame lawmakers
don't seem to recognize their opportunity.

To describe the Illinois drug war as a drought-resistant weed actually
understates the case. Prohibition is more like the mutant plant in "Little
Shop of Horrors: - constantly growing, and ready to devour any resources
within reach.

It's time to stop the feeding beast with money we don't have, and lives we
can't afford to waste.

STEPHEN YOUNG

Roselle, and formerly of University Park Via e-mail