PERHAPS DAUGHTER'S ARREST WILL TRIGGER NEW THINKING

The story of Noelle Bush, the governor's daughter, is sad.

It's one that evokes sympathy and compassion and pulls at the heartstrings
of parents everywhere.

Understandably, Jeb Bush asks that the family be left alone to deal in
privacy with the reverberations of Noelle's drug arrest. It's a request
that should be honored.

However, even though privacy is proper, the arrest raises questions about
public policy that must be addressed.

Newspapers across the state, in reporting on the arrest Tuesday in
Tallahassee, hinted delicately that this wasn't Noelle Bush's first problem
with drugs.

Quoting sources close to the Bush family, they reported there had been
other instances of drug abuse.

The Miami Herald quoted sources as saying Noelle Bush had been in and out
of rehabilitation programs for years and that she had entered an Atlanta
rehab clinic at least once since her father became governor.

Bush himself acknowledged during his 1998 campaign that one of his children
had had problems with drugs, although he wouldn't say which one.

Bush, as any caring parent would do, has tried to help his daughter.

And that's the usual course for substance abusers who are themselves people
of means or who are the children of people of means: second and third
chances and private rehab programs.

For people without connections or with little money, however, the course is
often different. Look at our prisons. They are full of people serving time
on drug charges.

But even Florida, not exactly progressive in its approach to criminal
justice, has recognized that slamming the jail door shut on drug offenders
might not be the best approach.

In recent years, special drug courts have been set up where drug offenders
are given a closely monitored second chance to straighten up their acts.

And programs have been established in the state's prisons to treat drug
abusers who have been incarcerated to prepare them for a life on the outside.

This is the wise approach in both human and fiscal terms. A life turned
around is a positive addition to society. And, to put it coldly, it's
cheaper to rehab drug abusers than to keep them locked up in prison.

Yet, the governor is proposing budget cuts that will hurt these very programs.

Maybe now, given the events of the week, he will rethink his position.

Noelle Bush will get another chance. Hopefully, she will take advantage of it.

Others ought to be afforded the same opportunity, even those without means
and connections.

The first is a private family matter, and that is to be respected.

But the latter is a public policy question that should be vigorously
debated, especially now that a spotlight is shining brightly on it because
of the sadness of a young woman's plight.

She's the daughter of a governor, but there are many who aren't.