WILL WE CONTINUE TO RUIN THE LIVES OF DRUG OFFENDERS?

I don't think anyone is going to argue that Noelle Bush or the state
of Florida is best served by giving Noelle the maximum penalty of five
years' imprisonment for prescription fraud. Toning down the zero-
tolerance rhetoric would help facilitate cost-effective drug treatment.

The option of treatment instead of incarceration would do more than
save taxpayers money. Prisons transmit violent habits rather than
reduce them. Most minor drug offenders are eventually released with
dismal job prospects because of their criminal records. Turning
recreational drug users into career criminals is a senseless waste of
tax dollars.

At present, there is a glaring double standard in place. Alcohol and
tobacco are by far the deadliest recreational drugs, yet the
government does not go out of its way to destroy the lives of drinkers
and smokers.

Imagine if every alcoholic were thrown in jail and given a permanent
criminal record. How many lives would be destroyed? How many families
would be torn apart? How many tax dollars would be wasted turning
potentially productive members of society into hardened criminals?

ROBERT SHARPE,
Program Officer,
Drug Policy Alliance