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Yes it does. In essence, you're state is not much different than ours if your drug court isn't really a seperate drug court. Actually, there's very little difference in the 2 states except our ACA's don't have the discretion your state seems to provide your ADAs. Yeah, technically, it's not a separate court. It's a program administered by an existing court. AL law is very clear in that the DA has sole discretion. More than one judge has had a writ of mandamus handed down for allowing a defendant to go through drug court/deferred over the DA's objection. If the DA says no, the judge has no jurisdiction to override that. The key, and this is also covered in our statutes, is the the DA should put the qualifying and disqualifying criteria down in writing and stick to it. It's when they start cherry picking for the programs. Each county that has a drug court runs it very differently. Some, for small drug cases even have their fees and community service reduced, and a "non-plea track" where they don't even enter a guilty plea, so if they drop out, then they are back at square one. Those are rare though. And as you can imagine, change like this where it's percieved as "easy on crime and criminals" is slow going in the rural areas of the state...the areas that need it most! +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ How many seperate courts do you have within your prosecution district? We have a county here (Rutherford) that has three within the General Sessions Court system, a DUI court, a Drug court and a Domestic Violence court. I know some people who work in that county, it's all you can do to keep up on the court docket.
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Campfire Kahuna
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Campfire Kahuna
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SteelyEyes, prior to working in IT, I was a Chemist and toxicology. I have yet to see a single, peer reviewed study that proves instant addiction with crack or meth. It is pure BS not supported by a single scientific study.
If anyone on this list can cite a single peer reviewed scientific study to support this contention, let's see it.
Methamphetamine (n-methyl-1-phenyl-propan-2-amine) is not exactly a new drug. It's over 100 years olds and was in common use until fairly recently. It's been used by soldiers to ward off fatigue since at least WWII, as well as being prescribe for a variety of condition in the 1950s. It is still used medically under the brand name Desoxyn.
Crack cocaine is a freebase form of the drug, so there is an actual chemical difference from cocaine HCL, the most common powdered form of the drug. The freebase is more quickly absorbed into the bloodstream than the alkaloid salt. Otherwise crack is metabolized in the same fashion as any other form of cocaine.
There is still debate about whether or not cocaine should actually be considered 'addictive' since it lacks the physical effects of classical addictive drugs like opiates. There are no physical withdrawal symptom associated with cocaine use, in contrast to methamphetamine There does seem to be a strong psychological addiction present in many users. I had the "privilege" of interviewing one of this countries first crack "cooks" back in the 1980's. I never forgot one of her statements. "If you is weak enough to try it, you ain't strong never gonna be strong enough to quit.". If you don't think crack is addictive, you are living a universe "far,far away". I don't care what somebody "told" you.
The only thing worse than a liberal is a liberal that thinks they're a conservative.
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Campfire Sage
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I had the "privilege" of interviewing one of this countries first crack "cooks" back in the 1980's. I never forgot one of her statements. "If you is weak enough to try it, you ain't strong never gonna be strong enough to quit.".
If you don't think crack is addictive, you are living a universe "far,far away". I don't care what somebody "told" you.
Once again, I guarantee that if you slipped some crack into my morning glass of OJ I would be no more inclined to get another fix than I am right now. Less so, even. Those who are addicted to drugs are addicted because of who they are as individuals, not because of the drugs.
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Campfire Kahuna
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Campfire Kahuna
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Kinda' what she said, ain't it? Although carck is not soluble in most liquids, I understand your statement, but I guarantee that if you used crack, or meth, or heroin a few times, you would MISS it, whether you liked it or not.
The only thing worse than a liberal is a liberal that thinks they're a conservative.
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Campfire Tracker
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Missing it, abusing it, an being addicted to it are different things. I'm not saying that drugs aren't addictive, just that becoming addicted is a change to your brain that takes quite a bit of time and drug use. Nobody is addicted from the first hit of ANY drug. It's just not biologically possible.
I've known a couple people that used crack pretty extensively and when they lost everything they had they stopped. No treatment or any outside help. Just wrestled with it and stopped.
All treatment amounts to is behavioral modification and teaching coping skills that don't involve self medication. Some people can do that themselves, most others can't but treatment isn't magic.
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Campfire Outfitter
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I had the "privilege" of interviewing one of this countries first crack "cooks" back in the 1980's. I never forgot one of her statements. "If you is weak enough to try it, you ain't strong never gonna be strong enough to quit.".
If you don't think crack is addictive, you are living a universe "far,far away". I don't care what somebody "told" you.
Psychologically addictive? That seems to be the case in some users. Physically addictive in the same way as opiate or amphetamines? No. Instantly addictive after a single use? It's not in the literature. I worked as a associate researcher for two separate Federally funded studies on drug use and drug addiction - one on methamphetamine and one on cocaine. As I previously noted, what was amazing to me is the number of addicts who are able to function in society. There are numerous examples of binge cocaine users - people who could use for extended periods of time, and then stop without any real effects or withdrawals. This is not the case with drugs like opiates that do produce physical symptom of withdrawal I'm not basing my opinion on what someone told me, but on both studies published in professional journals and collating data collected from thousands of drug users. Again, cite one peer reviewed scientific paper that shows addiction from a single use. I'll admit that while I spent over 10 years years at Corning Laboratories and Nichols institute as a toxicologist and analytical chemist, I haven't worked in that field for 14 years. So if you can provide a study to support you contention, I'd be very interested. The realities of drug abuse are bad enough that we don't have to invent stuff.
Be the person your dog thinks you are.
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Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
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Penny, if you think really hard you can figure out who used to post a lot, took several much ballyhood leaves from the board, made a triumphant comeback, and then quit posting just about the same time Stan started posting. Once you figure that out, you'll know exactly what is going on with Stan. Think really hard? Dude, the divide between bedrock Americans and RP diciples is stunning..... Stan, when you salute the NeoCon flag, you gotta stop smacking your forehead so hard, I think it's causing concussions.............. Casey
Casey
Not being married to any particular political party sure makes it a lot easier to look at the world more objectively...
Having said that, MAGA.
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Campfire Tracker
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I watch the Angola prison rodeo special every time it runs and think there's a prison with no heat or air conditioning where the inmates raise their own food and work. Instead of all the States having their own prisons, why can't we have all of them down where it's warm and save the heat and ac costs. Why, they could grow their own food and maybe even sell surplus to pay for their other expenses. Instead of auto manufacturers sending their factories to Mexico for cheaper labor costs, why can't auto plants be staffed by inmates. Making license plates is the tip of the iceberg, why not make the whole car? Teach them something that will get them a job when they get out.
"I didn't get the sophisticated gene in this family. I started the sophisticated gene in this family." Willie Robertson
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Campfire Ranger
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Campfire Ranger
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"Stan, when you salute the NeoCon flag, you gotta stop smacking your forehead so hard, I think it's causing concussions.............." LOL! that's close Casey, but not quite what I invisioned. Remember Benny Hill's salute with the spike helmut 
BAN THE RAINBOW FLAG!
PERVERTS OFFEND ME!
"When is penguin season, daddy? I wanna go kill a penguin!"
---- 4 yr old Archerhuntress
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Campfire Outfitter
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Those who are addicted to drugs are addicted because of who they are as individuals, not because of the drugs.
Easy enough to assert, hard to prove! Lots of people in rehab that unwittingly became addicted to otherwise "legal drugs".
Last edited by .280Rem; 05/05/08.
War Damn Eagle!
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Campfire Sage
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Campfire Sage
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Those who are addicted to drugs are addicted because of who they are as individuals, not because of the drugs.
Easy enough to assert, hard to prove! Lots of people in rehab that unwittingly became addicted to otherwise "legal drugs". True. I should have said "recreational drugs." Rush Limbaugh, for example, became addicted to pain medication. He, however, was not in search of a high, but relief from pain. He is not the type to seek out a drug induced high and become addicted to that high, so that's not what I was referring to. PS A friend of mine was addicted to Afrin when I was in High School. It manifested itself in an inability to breath through his nostrils unless he, more and more frequently, sniffed the stuff. I too became addicted to this stuff, but was determined to break out, and did so with the assistance of a prescription cortisone nasal spray, which is non-addictive, and which I stopped using as soon as the Afrin addiction was resolved. There is no high associated with this type of addiction, however, as you rightly point out.
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Campfire Kahuna
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Campfire Kahuna
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I had the "privilege" of interviewing one of this countries first crack "cooks" back in the 1980's. I never forgot one of her statements. "If you is weak enough to try it, you ain't strong never gonna be strong enough to quit.".
If you don't think crack is addictive, you are living a universe "far,far away". I don't care what somebody "told" you.
Psychologically addictive? That seems to be the case in some users. Physically addictive in the same way as opiate or amphetamines? No. Instantly addictive after a single use? It's not in the literature. I worked as a associate researcher for two separate Federally funded studies on drug use and drug addiction - one on methamphetamine and one on cocaine. As I previously noted, what was amazing to me is the number of addicts who are able to function in society. There are numerous examples of binge cocaine users - people who could use for extended periods of time, and then stop without any real effects or withdrawals. This is not the case with drugs like opiates that do produce physical symptom of withdrawal I'm not basing my opinion on what someone told me, but on both studies published in professional journals and collating data collected from thousands of drug users. Again, cite one peer reviewed scientific paper that shows addiction from a single use. I'll admit that while I spent over 10 years years at Corning Laboratories and Nichols institute as a toxicologist and analytical chemist, I haven't worked in that field for 14 years. So if you can provide a study to support you contention, I'd be very interested. The realities of drug abuse are bad enough that we don't have to invent stuff. Instantly addictive physically? Of course not. Junkies describe crack as "one thousand times better than sex". They LIKE it. They like it enough to do it again, and again and again. Before long they have to do it just to feel mormal. Heroin drowns any sense of worry. Meth is simular to crack, but longer lasting, with a dose of "energy" and paranoia thrown in. Name your poison. Most of us have the self control not to try it and obviously would not do it again if forced or tricked into doing so. Those that don't are likely to be addicted, whether physically, phycologically or whatever, from the first hit. While not a "peer reviewed scientific paper" can 26 years of seeing it in person count as a "study"? As I stated earlier (and back to topic), it really doesn't matter whether you lock these guys up for dope, or not. The ones that aren't going to quit, well...they're not going to quit, and they'll end up in prison, or dead, anyway.
The only thing worse than a liberal is a liberal that thinks they're a conservative.
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[quote=Tod]
While not a "peer reviewed scientific paper" can 26 years of seeing it in person count as a "study"?
Of course not. That's just anecdotal. Where's your control? Have you eliminated outside factors? Do you have raw data? Can I replicate your results?
As I stated earlier (and back to topic), it really doesn't matter whether you lock these guys up for dope, or not. The ones that aren't going to quit, well...they're not going to quit, and they'll end up in prison, or dead, anyway.
Exactly. So why create a system that removes the profit motive for dealers? And why pay to incarcerate them if it isn't going to make any difference. The argument for legalization is quite simple: As you note, those people aren't going to quit. They will get their drugs, whether legal or illegal. By making them illegal you raise the price and make it profitable for drug dealers, who then have a real incentive to make sure as many people as possible are users and addicts. By making drugs expensive, you encourage those who are dependent on them to resort to crime in order to obtain their fix. If incarceration works, why do European countries with relatively lax drug laws have low rates of drug use and low rates of drug crime? Again, it becomes a question of what your goals are. Do you want to reduce drug use and drug related crime? Or do you just want to punish people?
Be the person your dog thinks you are.
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Campfire Kahuna
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Campfire Kahuna
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We agree on the problem, GEEK.
The only thing worse than a liberal is a liberal that thinks they're a conservative.
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Campfire Outfitter
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Those who are addicted to drugs are addicted because of who they are as individuals, not because of the drugs.
Easy enough to assert, hard to prove! Lots of people in rehab that unwittingly became addicted to otherwise "legal drugs". True. I should have said "recreational drugs." Rush Limbaugh, for example, became addicted to pain medication. He, however, was not in search of a high, but relief from pain. He is not the type to seek out a drug induced high and become addicted to that high, so that's not what I was referring to. PS A friend of mine was addicted to Afrin when I was in High School. It manifested itself in an inability to breath through his nostrils unless he, more and more frequently, sniffed the stuff. I too became addicted to this stuff, but was determined to break out, and did so with the assistance of a prescription cortisone nasal spray, which is non-addictive, and which I stopped using as soon as the Afrin addiction was resolved. There is no high associated with this type of addiction, however, as you rightly point out. I'm gonna have to go you one further. Addict A is addicted to pain meds, and sees several docs to keep scripts. All legal, but he's still an addict. Addict B got hooked the same way, but now buys his pain meds illegally off the street because his docs got wise to him, or he didn't know how to work the pharmach systme. Addict C is addicted to alcohol. Legal to buy no scrip needed. Addict D played around with Coke/Crack/Meth at a party, and after a few times got addicted and now buys it and uses regularly. 4 addicts. 2 "legally addicted", 1 "legally addicted" but now forced to purchase illegally, 1 whose use and addiction were "illegal" from the outset. Is it your assertion that Addict D is of low character because of this, and that the other "addicts" are mere victims? What if the alcoholic lives in dry county and illegally possesses alcohol even though it's legal where he buys it? Does that change his character as a addict? Not every recreational user gets addicted. Not every drinker become an alcoholic. Not a soul sets out to become an addict. TRH, are you going to sit there and tell me that you've never ingested an illegal substance in your life? Never had a friend give you some of his scrip pain pills for some pain. Never once tried marijuana in your early years?
War Damn Eagle!
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Does AL. have any state governed medical program? We've got TNcare, it's turned into a Dr. shopping program for some with painkillers. Shortly after the state started the program, they had to create a LE Div. to keep up with the fraud and such from both Dr's & patients.
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Campfire Regular
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.280Rem,
I'm not TRH, but I can say I've never smoked, drank, done any drugs of any kind including marijuana, and no pain pills from a friend.
Though with several broken bones, stitches, smashed fingers etc., I gladly took the pain meds prescribed by the doctor.
You probably don't believe it, but it's the truth. I have friends and family that have managed that same path. Sadly everyone thinks that to have fun and live life to the fullest you have to spend part of your life drunk, high, wasted, or even addicted.
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.280Rem,
I'm not TRH, but I can say I've never smoked, drank, done any drugs of any kind including marijuana, and no pain pills from a friend.
Though with several broken bones, stitches, smashed fingers etc., I gladly took the pain meds prescribed by the doctor.
You probably don't believe it, but it's the truth. I have friends and family that have managed that same path. Sadly everyone thinks that to have fun and live life to the fullest you have to spend part of your life drunk, high, wasted, or even addicted.
Henry, I don't think you'd lie to me here. I suspect you're from an older generation though. Nobody chooses to be addicted though. Ten 21 year olds go out on their Birthday for their first drink...Some might choose to never do it again, some will drink socially and never have a problem, and a couple will become addicts before they know it. Addiction is a disease. I'm convinced it's part of the human condition. Some people are addicted to positive things such as exercise, or work...both of which can still become a problem if you're addicted. Wouldn't you agree? Still, they're not viewed the same as a alcoholic, or addict addicted to pain meds due to chronic pain, or the "street addict". Still, at it's roots, addiction is addiction.
War Damn Eagle!
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Does AL. have any state governed medical program? We've got TNcare, it's turned into a Dr. shopping program for some with painkillers. Shortly after the state started the program, they had to create a LE Div. to keep up with the fraud and such from both Dr's & patients. I'm not real sure of anything like that here.
War Damn Eagle!
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Since this is about Prison Nation......you that argue that drugs are light duty (harmless?) and mostly victimless.....you who would like to see a change of law legalizing, or reducing the sentences are not suggesting that the first time a 'user' is finally busted means a felony conviction and prison term, are you? From what I've seen and read it takes flagrant and repeated trips to the judge to see the inside of a prison. Unless it's a drug traffic bust.....then it's adios amigos.
We keep defining deviancy down and we eventually hit bottom.
All American
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