WHAT ARE WE WINNING IN THIS WAR ON DRUGS?

Know Your Rights When Stopped

The Drug Policy Forum of Oklahoma presented “Busted: The Citizens Guide to Surviving Police Encounters,” a short film by Flex Your Rights discussing the most common mistakes people make when interacting with the police at the Wes Watkins Center on Wednesday night. The video outlined proper techniques to use when pulled over in a car, when approached by police on the street and when the police come to your home.

-View Know Your Rights During Police Encounters here!-

The video’s main advice was to remain courteous to the officer while asserting your constitutional rights. The video said the best phrases to use in a situation where police ask you whether they may search your space are “I don’t consent to any searches,” “Am I free to go?” and “I have nothing to say without consulting my lawyer.” This lets the police officer politely know he or she may not search without a warrant. The rights provided in the Fourth, Fifth and Sixth amendments protect citizens in these scenarios from illegal searches.

Meghan Correin, a hotel and restaurant management senior, said he thought the video provided useful information for avoiding searches happen all too often. “It’s something that you hear about all the time through word of mouth,” Correin said. “If we have discussion about avoiding searches — I think it gives you a little more power and makes you feel better about being able do it and knowing for sure that you can do that.”

Another piece of advice the video offered was to answer the officer’s question, “Do you know why I pulled you over,” with another question, “Why did you pull me over, sir?” These questions help citizens avoid admitting to any crime the police can later use against the citizen.

President of the group, Ron Shewey, led a discussion after the film. Shewey said the purpose of his group is to act as an educational tool to inform the public about legal and illegal drugs and the issues surrounding drugs. Shewey said the group believes the government should not make the use of any drug illegal. “The Drug Policy Forum is an anti-prohibition or anti-drug war organization,” Shewey said. “We don’t think anybody should be locked up for using a substance [of] any kind. It should be legalized and regulated.” Shewey said that although prisons are full, the district attorney continues to lock up nonviolent drug offenders. Shewey said he believed this video would inform citizens on how they can confidently avoid searches that may lead to arrests.

Shewey said he wanted students to know that no matter what a police officer says students do not have to agree to a search without a warrant. “Be courteous and keep in mind unless you invite the police into your space, they can’t be there,” Shewey said. “Never invite them into your space because they are looking for ways to get you into trouble.”

Steve Kammerzell, a history senior, said, “Many students get nervous because they think of the cop having authority of power over you, but there are little things like ask questions to answer questions. I mean, that’s good, I’m probably going to use that.” (From the 9/13/2007 O'Colly)

DPFOK Speaker Says State Studying Drug Issue

He cited Gov. Brad Henry’s proposed Smart on Crime program, which would divert non-violent drug offenders to residential treatment, as a step in the right direction. Taking someone who is not a criminal and putting him in jail, where his risks of becoming a criminal increase, is “from a fiscal, moral and pragmatic standpoint, the wrong thing to do,” he said. Full story...

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Oklahoma Prisons and Their Consequences

Ms. Holloway has been a religious volunteer in Oklahoma prisons since 2001. She has a Masters of Divinity from Phillips Theological Seminary, is ordained in a non-denominational church and is a candidate for ordination in a Unitarian Universalist Church. Growing up in a military family, she has lived in Washington, D.C. and Bangkok, Thailand. Ms. Holloway is a member of the Oklahoma Corrections Advisory Council which advises the Department of Corrections on issues religious volunteers and inmates face regarding religious practices.

In prisons there are people of as many different faiths as in the general population: Islam, Buddhism, Native American, Wiccan and Christian, for example. Inmates who have regular religious support do better when they get out. They are less likely to re-offend. Ms. Holloway volunteers at the Mabel Bassett Correctional Facility where there are 1,100 women incarcerated. There is one full-time chaplain whose salary is less than that of a beginning elementary school teacher. The chaplain's job consists almost entirely of paperwork. The 4,500 religious volunteers in Oklahoma are very important. If they were paid for their hours worked, the state would go broke.

Prison is a society, even though an artificial one, and there are sexual activities and sexual abuse, just as there are outside of the prison system. There are corrupt workers and good workers, just as there are outside of prison. Drugs are nearly as available as outside of prison. To survive, the inmates learn how to lie, cheat, distrust, manipulate, steal and cajole.

Our prisons also serve as mental institutions and the mentally ill sometimes use their medications for currency by trading them for other things. Prisons were begun to punish offenders; then they tried to reform them, thus the religious name: penitentiary. In the modern prison system, however, the correction and rehabilitation costs money we in Oklahoma are not willing to pay. In other states it costs $20,000 to $30.000 per year to incarcerate a prisoner. In Oklahoma it costs $16,500.

Prisons don't help people learn to live well in the world. There are some marriage preparation and parenting courses that inmates may take to learn to improve their relationships. Success in these courses can move them to a higher level where they can shorten their time spent in prison. There is access to some higher education, but tuition must be paid. A few scholarships are available so some inmates may work toward a college degree. The GED is free in some prisons, but vocational training is available only at work-release centers. Prisons are overcrowded, and any drug rehabilitation begins only six months before release. More money would provide more education and help prepare inmates for a life after prison.

Our society does not re-integrate people well. After release, former prisoners can't get a job. They need six months to get a license, so they can't drive their children to activities. Ms. Holloway believes that prison doesn't help non-violent offenders at all. Dealing with non-violent offenders outside of prisons would rehabilitate offenders as well as save our state money.

As citizens we can help by urging our legislators to pass bills on Restorative Justice to replace the punitive system that we have. We can talk to legislators about the expensive phone calls the families of prisoners have to pay for, and the cities that profit from these calls. We need more money per inmate and fewer inmates in prison.

MORE DPFOK MEETINGS REVIEWED HERE

LIBERALS AND CONSERVATIVES ON THE WAR ON DRUGS:

"Take it from a businessman: The War on Drugs is just money down the drain."
Gary E. Johnson, Governor of New Mexico (1995-2003)

"Penalties for the possession of a drug should not be more damaging to an individial than the use of the drug itself."
Jimmy Carter, 39th U. S. President

"We need at least to consider and examine forms of controlled legalization of drugs."
George Shultz, Former U. S. Secretary of State

"Can any policy, however high minded, be moral if it leads to widespread corruption, imprisons so many, has so racist an effect, destroys our inner cities, wreaks havoc on misguided and vulnerable individuals and brings death and destruction to foreign countries?"
Milton Friedman, Nobel Prize Winner, Economics

"Eighty-five million Americans have experimented with illegal drugs. Since the object of criminal law is to detect and punish the wrongdoer, should we reason that 85 million of us should have spend time in jail?"
William F. Buckley, Jr., Founder, National Review

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