Reforms Needed to Hone the Reach of Proposition 36
In 2000, California overhauled its drug laws by enacting Proposition 36. The “Substance Abuse and Crime Prevention Act” allows most offenders convicted of casual drug use or possession to undergo treatment in lieu of any jail time. The policy goals of the new law were (1) to reduce drug abuse by treating addicts, and (2) to save scarce jail and prison space for more dangerous criminals.
Yet people convicted of selling narcotics and possession of narcotics for sale are ineligible to participate in Proposition 36. While it makes sense that major drug dealers should not escape punishment by feigning the need for treatment, the blanket exclusion of sales-based offenders from the program does not seem accurate.
Many offenders arrested for selling (or possessing for sale) a small quantity of drugs really are casual users selling petty amounts to fund their own drug addiction. Most of them are not dangerous and many of them could benefit much more from treatment than incarceration. Proposition 36 could be more effective if it gave judges discretion to examine the facts of each case and offer the program where appropriate, even for many defendants accused of selling narcotics.
