dpa ally summer 2011 final

8/6/2019 DPA Ally Summer 2011 Final

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/dpa-ally-summer-2011-final 1/8

HappyBirthday,DrugWar

ATimeforReflection–andAction

Ethan Nadelmann, Executive Director

Someanniversariesprovideanoccasion

forcelebration,othersatimeforreflection,

stillothersatimeforaction.ThisJune

marksfortyyearssincePresidentNixon

declareda“warondrugs,”identifying

drugabuseas“publicenemyNo.1.”

AsfarasIknow,nocelebrationsare

planned.What’sneeded,indeed

essential,arereflection–andaction.

It’shardtobelievethatAmericanshave

spentroughlyatrilliondollarsonthis

forty-yearwar.Hardtobelievethattens

ofmillionshavebeenarrested,andmanymillionslockedupinjailsandprisons,

forcommittingnonviolentactsthatwere

notevencrimesacenturyago.Andhard

tobelievethathundredsofthousandsof

Americanshavebeenallowedtodie–

ofoverdoses,AIDS,hepatitisandother

diseases–becausethedrugwarblocked

andevenprohibitedtreatingaddictionto

certaindrugsasahealthproblemrather

thanacriminalone.

RepublicanandDemocraticgovernors

confrontingmassivestatebudgetdeficitsarenowendorsingalternatives

toincarcerationfornonviolentdruglaw

offendersthattheywouldhaverejected

outofhandjustafewyearsago.Itwould

beatragedy,however,ifthesemodest

butimportantstepsresultinnothingmore

thanakinder,gentlerdrugwar.

What’sreallyneededisthesortof

reckoningthatidentifiesastheproblem

notjustdrugaddictionbutprohibitionas

well–andthataimstoreducetheroleof

criminalizationandthecriminaljustice

systemindrugcontroltothemaximum

extentpossiblewhileenhancingpublic

safetyandhealth.

Whatbetterwaytomarkthe

40thanniversaryofthewarondrugs

thanbybreakingthetaboosthathave

precludedfrankassessmentofthecosts

andfailuresofdrugprohibitionaswellas

itsvariedalternatives.

TheDrugPolicyAllianceandourallies

inthisrapidlygrowingmovementintend

tobreakthattraditionofdenial–by

transformingthisanniversaryintoayear

ofaction.Ourobjectiveisambitious–

toattainthecriticalmassatwhichthe

momentumforreformexceedsthepow-

erfulinertiathathassustainedpunitive

prohibitionistpoliciesforalltoolong.

FortyyearsafterPresidentNixon

declaredhiswarondrugs,we’reseizing

uponthisanniversarytopromptbothreflectionandaction.Andwe’reasking

you–indeedeveryonewhoharbors

reservationsaboutthewarondrugs–

tojoinus.

InThisIssue:

2:WhatWouldYouDoWith$75Million?

3:DrugCourtsAreNottheAnswer

6:NewDirectionsforNewJersey

7:ShatteringtheTough-on-CrimeMyth

NightmareinNewMexico

8:SinceWeLastSpoke

SpecialSectionInside:

Questions?Feedback?

Welovetohearfromourmembers.

ContacttheAlly bywritingtoeditor

JagDaviesat:[email protected]

Wanttoshareoneofthese

storieswithafriend?

TheAlly isonlineat:

www.drugpolicy.org/library/ally.cfm

Summer2011

www.drugpolicy.org

NO MORE

DRUG WAR

Above: DPA Executive Director Ethan Nadelmann,

NewJimCrowauthor Michele Alexander, and

Reverend William Howard, pictured at DPA’s New

Directions conference in Newark, New Jersey.



Ally2 Spring2011 www.drugpolicy.org

WhatWouldYouDoWith$75Million?DPACampaignPromptsPublicDebate

onNYCMarijuanaArrestCrusade

It’sashamethatNewYorkMayor

MichaelBloomberg’sproposedbudget

cutsdon’tincludewastefullawenforce-

mentpractices.

Thearreststatisticssayitall.Just

34,000peoplewerearrestedformarijuana

possessionfrom1981to1995–butin

thelast15years540,000people(!)were

arrestedformarijuanapossession.Morethan50,000peoplewerearrestedfor

marijuanapossessionin2010alone,

farexceedingthe total arrestsfrom

1981-1995.

TheNewYorkPoliceDepartmenthas

providednoevidencethatthesemassive

numbersofarrestshavedoneanything

toreducecrimeortoimprovepublic

safetyandqualityoflife.Thereisalsono

evidencewhatsoeverthatmorepeople

aresmokingmarijuanatodaythanin

the1980s.

AnewDPAreportreleasedinMarch–

amongthefirstofitskindtoquantifythe

costsoflow-levelmarijuanapossession

arrests–findsthatarrestsformarijuana

possessioncostNewYorkCitytaxpayers

approximately$75millioneachyear.

Asinglearrestformarijuanapossession,

includingallpoliceandcourtexpenses,

costsfrom$1,000to$2,000ormore,

conservativelyestimated.

DPAreleasedthereportataCityHall

pressconferencewiththreeCityCouncilmembers,alliedorganizations,

andNewYorkerswhohavebeen

arrestedformarijuanapossession.

Inastatementreleasedwiththereport,

morethan30NYC-basedorganizations

identifiedhowtheythinktheBloomberg

administrationshouldspend$75million.

Gettingarrestedformarijuanaisnosmall

matter–notleastbecauseitcreatesa

permanentcriminalrecordthatcaneasily

befoundontheInternetbyemployers,

landlords,schools,creditagencies,

licensingboardsandbanks.Morethan

70percentofthepeoplearrestedfor

marijuanapossessionareyoungpeople

aged16-29.Thevastmajorityofthemare

blackandLatino,eventhoughstudies

showthatyoungwhitesusemarijuanaat

higherrates.

What’salsoremarkableaboutthesearrests

isthatmanyofthemaretheresultof

illegalsearchesbytheNYPD,aspartofits

controversialstop-and-friskpractices.

Marijuanawasdecriminalizedin

NewYorkStatein1977–andthatlawis

stillonthebooks.Smokingmarijuanain

publicorhavingmarijuanavisiblein

public,however,remainsacrime.

Mostpeoplearrestedformarijuana

possessionarenot smokinginpublic,but

simplyhaveasmallamountintheirpocket,

purseorbag.Oftenwhenpolicestopand

questionaperson,theysay“emptyyour

pockets”or“openyourbag.”Manypeople

comply,eventhoughthey’renotlegallyrequiredtodoso.Ifapersonpullsmari-

juanafromtheirpocketorbag,itisthen

“opentopublicview.”Thepolicethen

arresttheperson.

ItisbeyondhypocriticalforMayor

Bloomberg–whooncesaidhesmoked

marijuanaandenjoyedit–towasteso

muchmoneyandtoharmsomany

people’slives.

To learn more, check out:

www.drugpolicy.org/nyc-arrests



Drugcourts

confusepunishment

withtreatmentand

perpetuateacriminal

justiceresponsetowhatisfundamentally

anissueofhealth.

www.drugpolicy.org3Ally Spring2011

DPAReportCallsforaHealth-Based

ApproachtoDrugUse

Many,allthewayuptotheObama

administration,considerthecontinued

proliferationofdrugcourtstobea

viablesolutiontotheproblemofmass

arrestsandincarcerationofpeoplewho

usedrugs.Butasthedrugcourtsband-

wagongrows,thinktwicebeforeyou

jumpon.DPA’snewreport,Drug Courts

Are Not the Answer: Toward a Health-

Centered Approach to Drug Use ismakingwavesbycallingintoquestion

thisflawedapproach.

DPAheldtwoCapitolHillbriefingsin

Washington,D.C.,lastMarchtocoincide

withthereleaseofthereport.Wewere

joinedbytheJusticePolicyInstitute

andtheNationalAssociationofCriminal

DefenseLawyers,twogroupswhohave

alsoreleasedreportscriticalofdrug

courts.

Drugcourtsemergedinthelate1980sasoneoftheonlypoliticallyfeasible

alternativestotheharshprisonsen-

tencesenactedbylegislatorsduringthe

drugwarhysteriaofthosedays.

Butanalternativethatlookedgoodback

thendemandscriticalre-assessment

now–especiallyasbudgetdeficits

andpublicopinionincreasingly

demandmoreeffectiveandless

expensivesolutions.

Oureffortsarestirringupdebatesin

statecapitolsandcriminaljusticecircles

aroundthecountry.Within24hours

ofthereport’srelease,theNational

AssociationofDrugCourtProfessionals

(NADCP)–agroupdedicatedto

promotingandfundraisingfordrug

courts–respondedharshly,withattacks

thatignoredthesubstanceofthereport

andinsteadattackedthemessenger.

TheNADCPheldtheirownCapitolHill

briefingtwoweeksafterours,wherethey

flewinspokespeoplefromaroundthe

country–including,ofallpeople,Martin

Sheen,fatherofCharlie–totoutthe

benefitsofdrugcourts.

Thetruthisthatdrugcourtsoftenfail

toreducetimespentbehindbars,save

money,orimprovepublicsafety.Many

drugcourtscherry-pickparticipants

expectedtodowell,includingthose

withonlypettydruglawviolations

(likemarijuanapossession)whoare

notfacingsubstantialtimebehindbars

andwhodon’treallyneeddrugtreat-

ment.Meanwhile,peoplestrugglingwith

significantdrug-relatedproblemsmay

endupworseoffindrugcourtthanif

theyhadreceivedservicesoutsidethecriminaljusticesystem,beenleftalone,

orevenbeenconventionallysentenced.

Alltold,drugcourtsconfusepunishment

withtreatmentandperpetuateacriminal

justiceresponsetowhatisfundamentally

anissueofhealth.

Thefactthat1.4millionAmericansare

arrestedeveryyearfordrugpossession

isaproblemthatwillnotbesolvedby

drugcourts.Morethantwentyyears

afterthecreationofthenation’sfirst

drugcourt,muchbetterpolicyoptions

arenowbeingimplementedtoaddress

addictionanddruguse–andtofix

theproblemsofmassdrugarrestsand

incarceration.

Read the report:

www.drugpolicy.org/drugcourts

DrugCourtsAreNottheAnswer

Drug CourtsAre Not theAnswer:Toward aHealth-CenteredApproachto Drug Use



ByGeorgeSoros,DPABoardMember

Ifthereisoneprinciplethathasguided

bothmyworkinthefinancialmarketsand

myeffortstopromotetheidealknownas

the“opensociety,”itisthefactofhuman

fallibility.ItwasanideaIfirstencoun-

teredstudyingphilosophyattheLondon

SchoolofEconomics:Wecanprove

whatisnot true,butwecannotsay

conclusivelywhat istrue.

Hencethenecessityoftheopen

society–oneinwhichanyproposition

canbefreelyandpeacefullydiscussed,challengedanddebated.

Perhapstosomestudentsthisideaof

humanfallibilitywasaphilosophical

abstraction.Buthavingescapedboth

theNaziandcommunistoccupationsof

Hungary,Isawitsimplicationsimmedi-

ately:Anyregimethatclaimstopossess

theabsolute,unchallengeabletruthis

makinganempiricallyfalseclaim–

andcanonlysustainitbyshutting

downdissent.

Ihavedevotedmylifesincethentohelp-

ingbuildopensocietiesandovercome

closedones.Today,Iamengagedinthat

fightrighthereintheU.S.

Hereinourowncountry,nothingso

resemblestheclosedsocietythanthe

tragicfailureknownasthewarondrugs.

Thewarondrugshasallthecharacteris-

ticsofaclosedsociety:Theabsolute

powersclaimedbytheauthorities,the

attempttosilencecriticsratherthan

engagethem,and,ofcourse,the

humancoststhatinevitablyresult–our

failuretodealwithaddiction,theviolentcrimeourdrugpolicieshavespawned,

andmore.

DPAhasplayedacrucialroleinpassing

medicalmarijuanalawsinmostofthe

15stateswheremedicalmarijuanais

nowlegal.Theyledthewayinreforming

NewYorkState’sdraconianRockefeller

DrugLaws.InCalifornia,theyspear-

headedProposition36,thesinglebiggest

pieceofsentencingreformintheU.S.

sincetherepealofalcoholProhibition,

whichhasdivertedmorethan

AnExtraordinaryMomentofOpportunity

DoYouKnowYourDrugWarHistory?

300,000peoplewhowerearrestedfor

possessingasmallamountofdrugs

fromprison.

Butthebackboneofthismovementis

thesupportofAmericansjustlikeyou

whoareunwillingtopayeverhigher

costs–measuredinourtaxesaswell

asourliberty–forwhateveryserious

personknows,andwhatmanypoliticians

privatelyadmit,isanabjectfailure.

DPAandsupporterslikeyouareanswer-

ingwiththevaluesofanopensociety–a

courageouswillingnesstostatethefacts,challengetheconventionalwisdomand

askthehardquestions…andasteadfast

confidencethatdoingsowillexposethe

ideologyofthedrugwarasthefailure

thatitis.

Thisis–orcanbe–ahistoricmoment,

butonlyifyouandIseizeitbyspeaking

outandpushingforchange.

1875

TheSanFranciscoBoard

ofSupervisorspasses

whatmaybethenation’sfirstanti-drug

ordinance,bymakingitamisdemeanor

offensetoownorpatronizeanopium

den.ThelawtargetsChineseimmigrants

andismotivatedbytheanti-Chinese

sentimentthatsweptacrossCalifornia

atthetime.

1914 TheHarrisonNarcoticsTaxAct,thefirstfederal

legislationintheU.S.torestrictaccess

tomedicineslikemorphineandcocaine,

ispassed.

1919 CongresspassestheNationalProhibitionAct,

prohibitingthesale,manufacture,and

transportationofalcohol.

1930 TheFederalBureauofNarcoticsiscreated.Its

commissioner,HarryJ.Anslinger,claims

thatmarijuanacausesmurderand

lunacy,andleadsapubliccampaign

againstthedrugthroughouthistenure

from1930-1962.

1933 AlcoholProhibitionisrepealed.

1937 TheMarijuanaTaxActmakespossessionor

transferofmarijuanaillegalintheU.S.

underfederallaw.

1950s -1960s PsychedelicdrugssuchasLSDand

psilocybinareconsideredpromising

treatmentsforarangeofpsychological

andpsychiatricconditions.Butasthey

becomesymbolsofyouthfulrebellion

andsocialupheaval,thegovernment

haltsscientificresearchtoevaluatetheir

safetyandefficacy.

1971 PresidentRichardNixondeclaresa“warondrugs.”

Hedramaticallyincreasesthesizeand

presenceoffederaldrugcontrolagen-

ciesandpushesthroughmeasuressuch

asmandatorysentencingand

no-knockwarrants.

1972 AbipartisancommissionappointedbyPresident

Nixonunanimouslyrecommends

decriminalizingthepossessionof

marijuanaforpersonaluse.

www.nomoredrugwar.org



ByIraGlasser,DPABoardPresident

AsheadoftheAmericanCivilLiberties

Unionfor23years,andnowatDPA,

Ihavedevotedmyprofessionallifeto

protectingindividualrights.AndifIhave

learnedonelessonovermanydecades,

itisthis:Thegreatestdangertocivil

libertiesiswarandthefearsthatgovern-

mentencouragestojustifyit.

Waristheexcusepoliticiansusetosup-

presslibertyinthenameofemergency.

Those“emergencies”havehistorically

beenexaggerated,rightshavebeenwidelyviolated,andpeoplehavebeen

unjustlyimprisoned.Warlicensesgovern-

mentabusesthatwouldbeintolerable

underanyothercircumstances.

Theabsurdities–andthetragedies–of

thewarondrugscontinuetomount.

TheCIAandthemilitarybecameinvolved

indruginterdictionoverseas,corrupting

ourforeignpolicies.Meanwhile,hereat

homewe’veseenadangeroustrend–

amilitarizationofthedrugwarthatis

terrorizingourcommunities.

Fortheirpart,thecourts–whichoughtto

betheguardiansofourliberties–have

insteadrepeatedlycarvedoutwhatthe

lateJusticeThurgoodMarshallderidedas

“thedrugexceptiontotheConstitution.”

Thedrugwarisalsotheleading

causeoftheeviscerationoftheFourth

Amendment’sprotectionagainst

unreasonablesearchesandseizures,

rightsthatsparkedtheAmerican

Revolutionandbecameenshrinedin

theConstitution.

Butnowhereistheimpactofthewaron

drugsmoreevidentthaninthegrimcountofAmericansconfinedbehindbars.In

2009,1.66millionpeoplewerearrestedin

theU.S.fordruglawviolations.Morethan

fouroutoffiveofthesearrestswerefor

merepossession.

Considerthis:In1980,therewere

50,000peoplebehindbarsintheU.S.for

nonviolentdruglawoffenses.Thereare

nowhalfamillion.

CivilLibertiesandtheWaronDrugs

Theheavyhandofgovernment’spolice

powerusedinthiswaywouldbebad

enoughifitweretargetedagainstall

ofus.Buttheraciallydisproportionate

enforcementofdruglawshasmadethem

themostdevastatingengineofracial

subjugationsinceJimCrow.

Andforallthis–forthebillionswe’ve

spent,themillionswe’vejailed,thecount-

lesslibertieswe’veeroded–whatexactly

hasthewarondrugsaccomplished?

I’dliketobeabletotellyounothing–but

theundeniablefactisthatit’smadethe

situationmuchworse.

Thiswarhasdestroyedenoughliberties

andclaimedenoughlives.It’stimetoend

it–andtodosoinpursuitofthesocial

justicetowhichactivistsjustlikeyou

havebroughtAmericaevercloserover

thegenerations.Youhavedoneitbefore.

Nowweneedyoutodoitagain.

Nostruggleforindividualrightsand

justicehaseverbeenwonwithoutpeople

likeyou.Andmanystruggleshavebeen

wonwhenpeoplelikeyoujoinedandcametogetherandsaid“NoMore!”

1973 ThedraconianRockefellerDrugLaws

passinNewYorkState,settingthe

standardforharshmandatoryminimum

sentencesfordruglawviolations.

1973 -1977 Elevenstatesdecriminalizemarijuana

possession.

1981 RonaldReaganisinauguratedasPresident,

markingthestartofalongperiod

ofskyrocketingratesofarrestand

incarceration.

1983 LosAngelesPoliceChiefDarylGates,whooncesaid

that“casualdrugusersshouldbetaken

outandshot,”createstheDAREdrug

educationprogram,whichisquickly

adoptednationwidedespitethelackof

evidenceaboutitseffectiveness.

1995 PresidentBillClintonrejectsaU.S.Sentencing

Commissionrecommendationto

eliminatethedisparitybetweencrack

andpowdercocainesentences.

1996 Californiabecomesthefirststatetolegalize

medicalmarijuana.Overthenextdecade

andahalf,fifteenstatesandtheDistrict

ofColumbiafollowsuit.

1997 Morethan400,000peoplearebehindbars

fordruglawviolations,upfromjust

50,000in1980.

2006 Morethan26,000peopledieofaccidentaldrug

overdoseintheU.S.

NO MORE

DRUG WAR

2008 Over40,000peoplearearrestedinNewYorkCity

forsmallamountsofmarijuana,despite

thefactthatmarijuanapossessionhas

beendecriminalizedinNewYorkState

since1977.

2009 NewYork’sdraconianRockefellerDrugLaws

arerolledback.

2010 California’sProposition19,aballotmeasuretotaxand

regulatemarijuana,makeshistoryby

winningover46percentofthevote.

2010 Roughly1.7millionpeoplearearrestedforadrug

lawviolation–fouroutoffiveofthese

arrestsareformerepossession.Overall,

morethanhalfamillionpeopleare

behindbarsforadruglawviolation.



NewDirectionsConferenceBrings

TogetherPolicymakers,Religious

Leaders,DrugPolicyScholars,and

DPAMembersandSupporters

Drugpolicymaybeanationalproblem

–butthepracticalsolutionsandpolitical

willforreformemergefrompeopleand

organizationsworkingatthecityandstatelevels.

That’swhyDPAhasdevelopeda

strategicinitiative,calledNewDirections,

tomovethedebateforward,using

daylongcommunitygatheringsas

organizingtools.NewDirectionsisabout

connectingthedotsbetweenseemingly

disparateelementsofthedrugpolicy

reformmovement.Ouraimistofacilitate

anevolutioninthinkingaboutdrug

policy–andtofosternewcollaborative

relationshipsacrossfieldsthatcanhelp

bringaboutlocalreforms.

FollowinguponthesuccessofNew

DirectionsinNewYorkCity,LosAngeles,

andWashington,D.C.,DPAco-hosted

withBethanyBaptistChurcharemark-

ablegatheringofroughly200attendees

inNewark,NewJerseyinMarch.

TheNewarkconferencewasdesigned

togetpeoplethinkinginnewwaysaboutsolutionstothecity’sandstate’s

persistentdrugproblems,especially

highlevelsofviolence.Reverend

WilliamHoward,thehighlyrespected

andpoliticallyconnectedministerwho

leadsBethany,hadreachedouttoDPA

seekinghelpinstimulatingnewideas

anddialoguesinNewark.

Theresultofourpartnershipwasan

eventatwhichDPAbroughtinleading

drugpolicyscholarsandactivistsfrom

aroundthecountryandabroad.Bethany

broughtinkeylocalpolicymakers,

includingthepolicechiefofNewarkand

theattorneygeneralofNewJersey–

whonotonlyspokebutalsostayedand

listenedformuchoftheday.Theday’s

discussionscoveredeverythingfrom

racialjusticeandsentencingreformto

marijuanalegalizationandthenegative

consequencesofcriminalization.

NewDirectionsforNewJersey


Above, left: Stephanie Bush-Baskette, JD, PhD,

former NJ State Commissioner of Community

Affairs and Majority Whip in the NJ Assembly,

and current director of the Center for Metropolitan

Studies at Rutgers University.

Above: Garry McCarthy, former Deputy

Commissioner for the New York Police

Department and current Director of Police for

the City of Newark.

It’sessentialthatwedoallwecanright

nowtobuildmomentumforreform.

Peopleandorganizationsarelistening

forfreshideasabouthowtomovepast

thedrugwar,andthoseonthefront

linesmustbepreparedtorespond.

NewDirectionsisanintegralpartofour

strategytobuildthefutureofdrugpolicy

–so,keepaneyeoutforagatheringin

yourareasoon!



SuzannaMartinez

ThinksIt’sStill1987

NewMexico’snewgovernor,Suzanna

Martinez,isadisaster–athrowbackto

thedrugwarriorswhogotusintothis

messinthefirstplace.What’sdifferent

thistimeisthatpeoplearefightingback.

Martinezranforofficeonacampaign

platformthatincludeddismantlingthe

state’spopularandeffectivemedicalmarijuanaprogram.Thisemboldened

afreshmenlegislatortointroduceabill

torepealthestate’smedicalmarijuana

program–amovethatwouldhave

deprivedthousandsofseriouslyill

patientsoftheirmedicine.DPA’sNew

Mexicoofficemobilizedtoblockthis

heartlesslegislation,alertingmedical

marijuanasupporterstothethreatand

urgingthemtocontactthelegislature.

NightmareinNewMexicoAfterahugeresponsefromNewMexico

residents,thelegislatorwithdrewthere-

pealbill.DPAworkedincrediblyhardfrom

2001to2007tolegalizemedicalmarijuana

inNewMexico–andwewillnotstandby

whentheprogramisattacked.

DPAhasalsobeenworkinginNewMexico

foralmostadecadetopasslegislationre-

quiringtreatmentinsteadofincarceration

forpeoplearrestedfordrugpossession.

AlthoughsuchlegislationpassedtheHouseandSenatewithbipartisansupport–

andwiththesupportof71percentofNew

Mexicans–withthestrokeofapen,

GovernorSuzannaMartinezvetoedit,

paintingableakfutureforNewMexico’s

familiesfacingdruglawviolations.

ThousandsofNewMexicanscalledand

emailedtheGovernor,tellingtheirstories

andaskinghertotreataddictionasa

healthissue,notacriminalone.

RecentpollingbyDPAinCalifornia

showedsimilarresults.Nearlythree-

quarters(72percent)ofthosesurveyedfavoredreducingthepenaltiesforsimple

drugpossession.Thisincludedstrong

majoritiesofDemocrats(79percent),

independents(72percent),and

Republicans(66percent).

BothRepublicanandDemocratic

legislatorsinstatessuchasCalifornia,

Florida,Kentucky,NorthCarolinaand

Texasaregrapplingwithhugebudget

shortfallsandarebeingforcedtorecog-

nizethattheprisonspendingspreesofthe

pastarenolongersustainable.Inthese

statesandmanyothers,policymakersare

greetingDPA’sfindingswithenthusiasm.

The full report is available at:

www.drugpolicy.org/njcrime

DPAReportAddsSupportfor

GrowingNationalTrendtoward

DrugPolicyReform

Whenaskedtoratetheseriousness

of108offensesfoundinNewJersey’s

criminalcode,respondentsratedalmost

90percentoftheoffensesas less

serious ,andthereforedeservingof less

serious punishment,thanmandatedby

thestate’ssentencinglaws.

Forinstance,thepenaltyunderNew

Jerseylawforgrowing15marijuana

plantscanbringamaximumsentence

of20yearsbehindbars,butNewJersey

residentsratedtheoffenseatalevelof

seriousnessmandatingnomorethan

oneandahalfyears.

Thesewerethefindingsofareport

releasedbyDPAinAprilthatisgetting

attentionaroundthestateandacross

thecountry.

Thereport,Crime and Punishment in

New Jersey: The Criminal Code and

Public Opinion on Sentencing ,wasproducedbyUniversityofPennsylvania

LawSchoolProfessorPaulH.Robinson

andtheUniversityofPennsylvania

CriminalLawResearchGroup.Robinson

isoneoftheworld’sleadingcriminallaw

scholars,aformerfederalprosecutor

andformercounselfortheU.S.Senate

SubcommitteeonCriminalLawsand

Procedures.

Advocatessaythereportissendinga

joltthroughcriminaljusticecirclesand

addingforcetoanemergingnational

debate.Foryears,evidencehasshown

thatthepublicstronglysupportsalter-

nativestoincarcerationandincreased

judicialdiscretioninsentencing.Buta

growingbodyofevidenceindicates

publicsupportforamorecomprehen-

siverethinkingofcriminalpenalties.

ShatteringtheTough-on-CrimeMyth

Ally www.drugpolicy.org7Spring2011

“Iknowwhatitmeanstohaveanincarcer-

atedparent.Iknowhowitfeelstohavea

parentthatissickandonlygetstimeinjail

insteadoftreatment,”statedAvicraLuckey,

afamilymemberimpactedbysubstance

use.“GovernorMartinezcouldhave,and

shouldhavesignedthisbilltohelpfamilies

likemine.”

In2007alone,NewMexicospent$22million

toincarceratepeoplefornonviolentdrug

possession–andthatdoesn’tevenincludeotherdruglawviolationssuchasdrug

dealing,manufacturingortrafficking.

Inthepastdecade,NewMexicohasmade

morestridesthananyotherstateinreduc-

ingdrugmisuse,overdoseandaddiction

throughahealth-orientedframework.But,

withMartineznowinoffice,weneedyour

supportmorethaneversothestatecontin-

uestobeamodelfordrugpolicyreform.



•Coloradoisattheforefrontofefforts

bothtolegalizemarijuanaandto

reformdrugpoliciesmorebroadly.InMay,DPAexpandeditsstate-based

advocacybyappointingArtWayas

DrugPolicyManagerinColorado.

Waybringssubstantialpublic

policyandcriminaljusticereform

experiencetothisnewpositionat

DPA.Buildingonrecentstatewide

reforms,DPA’sprioritiesaretomini-

mizetheroleofthecriminaljustice

systeminaddressingdrug-related

issues,toincreasestatewidesupport

forhealth-centereddrugpolicies

suchasexpandedaccesstosterile

syringes,andtohelpcreatethecli-

mateforasuccessfulvoterinitiative

tolegalizemarijuanainColoradoas

soonas2012.

•DPAhasconfirmedthatDenverwill

bethehostcityforthe2013

InternationalDrugPolicyReformConference–somarkyour

calendarsandbeinDenveron

October23-26,2013!

•HaveyoutakenalookatDPA’sweb -

site–www.drugpolicy.org–recently?

Notonlydoesithaveanewlookand

feel,butit’salsore-structuredto

provideeasy-to-accessinformation

andactionopportunitiesonawide

rangeofissues.Takeitforaspinand

letusknowwhatyouthink!

SinceWeLastSpoke


Ifyou’reworkingtobringaboutdrugpoliciesbasedonscience,compassion,healthand

humanrights,youcan’taffordtomissthis

extraordinarygathering!

Registration:SignupbySeptember 9andsave$100

Scholarships:ApplybyJune 30tobeconsideredforfinancialassistance

SponsorshipandExhibitBooths:ConfirmbyJune 15fora5%discount

InternationalDrugPolicyReformConference

November2-5,2011LosAngeles,CA

www.reformconference.org

•DPA’songoingseriesofartauctions

–knownasre:FORM–madeitsLos

AngelesdebutinFebruary.More

than70artistsdonatedartworkfor

thebenefit,includingFrankGehry,

AlexandraGrant,SteveRodenand

EdRuscha.FilmmakerGusVanSant,

picturedabovewithDPAManaging

DirectorofPublicPolicyJillHarris,

servedasco-chairalongside

DPAboardmemberandCODEPINK

co-founderJodieEvans.

dpa ally summer 2011 final

Documents