Pubdate: Wed, 04 Feb 2015
Source: Los Angeles Times (CA)
Copyright: 2015 Los Angeles Times
Contact:  http://www.latimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/248
Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v15/n067/a08.html
Author: Thomas G. Hoffman

DRUGS AND JAILS

Re "Prop. 47 is working, but jury still out," Column, Jan. 31

As a former captain in the Inglewood Police Department, a former 
deputy police chief in West Sacramento and the former director of the 
state prison system's parole division, I voted for Proposition 47 not 
despite my experiences in law enforcement, but because of them.

Decades of using incarceration as our primary response to drug crime 
led to high recidivism rates, failing to address cycles of crime 
often driven by drug and mental health problems. Proposition 47, 
passed by voters in November, still allows law enforcement to arrest 
and jail someone before trial, but we know that incarceration often 
just pauses rather than stops criminal behavior.

Implying that Proposition 47 means we do nothing to drug offenders is 
misleading. The new law's implementation is a chance to invest in new 
strategies, with law enforcement viewing the drivers of crime differently.

I'm proud to have watched policing innovate over the years to reduce 
crime to record lows, and Proposition 47 is a chance to continue that 
innovation.

Thomas G. Hoffman

Folsom
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom