DRUG ADDICTION IS A DISEASE, NOT A CRIME by Russell Simmons

The greedy, corrupt prison lobbyists and their bosses are back at it again using false and misleading statements and statistics to scare the public into pushing even more nonviolent, diseased drug addicts into long term sentences. It has been evident over the years that these lobbyists and their cronies will fill their expensive prison “hotels” at any cost. These institutions have become some of the best schools in America, teaching nonviolent drug offenders how to become hardened-criminals, ultimately becoming life-long card members of their finest “hotels.” That is exactly why we worked for years on reforming the Rockefeller Drug Laws, so we would no longer treat our most vulnerable the same way we treat those who are real threats to our public safety. Through drug courts, rehabilitation and the end of mandatory minimum sentences we have made much progress since 2009, however, the full implementation of the reforms is still a ways away.

The statistics stated in today’s New York Post op-ed “Why Crime’s Rising: Drug Law ‘Reform’ Plaguing NY” by former Rockland County District Attorney Michael E. Bongiorno are grossly misrepresented. Mr. Bongiorno’s position that crime is rising in certain parts of our state because of drug law reform is unfounded and based on assumptions, rather than facts. His entire argument is based on the increase of violent crimes, however, the vast majority (close to 75 percent) of those incarcerated for drug offenses have never been convicted of a violent felony.

To read the entire article by Russell Simmons click the link http://www.huffingtonpost.com/russell-simmons/the-despicable-act-of-pay_b_1543674.html