Marijuana Policy Project

Treatment for drug offenders is great, and community-based programs for those offenders would be nice, too. Does anyone want to write the county a check?

That was a good deal of the sentiment from about a half-dozen members of Muscatine's law enforcement and criminal justice system who gathered at the Muscatine City Hall Tuesday night for a public forum. The effectiveness of mandatory minimum sentences, the amount of discretion given to law enforcement and legislative effects on the legal system were some of the points touched on.

About two dozen people attended the 90-minute forum.

"One big problem is that if you send users who are dealers to prison, there's a good argument that you're just making them better criminals," said district court judge Patrick J. Madden, responding to a question on the balance between treatment and punishment for drug offenders. "But if you don't put them in prison, how do you keep them away from their (drug) support system?"

Aside from Madden, the forum's panelists were magistrate Neva Rettig-Baker, Muscatine County Sheriff Greg Orr, county attorney Gary Allison, assistant county attorney Alan Ostergren, public defender Christine Dalton and Capt. Mike Scott of the Muscatine Police Department. Sue Johannsen, president of the local chapter of the sponsoring Iowa League of Women Voters, acted as moderator.

The forum was the first public event to be held by the Muscatine chapter since it was re-established in 2004. It was the result of the state-level Iowa League of Women Voters' examination of mandatory minimum sentencing, and the League's desire to educate the public on law enforcement issues.

The Iowa League of Women Voters favors decreased or repealed mandatory minimum sentencing and support for community based correction programs.

Changing times, changing laws

Panelists agreed that state legislation has limited their abilities to use discretion in matters of domestic violence and drug offenses.

Orr said that when he first started in law enforcement 30 years ago, he could almost set his watch by which houses would have domestic violence reports on the weekend. Whereas police and sheriff's department officials once had the option of using a cooling-off period, state law now pressures more aggressive tactics at the time of an incident.

"Once we get to the scene, someone's going to jail," Orr said, remarking on the rise of no-contact orders and tougher laws mandating arrests in domestic violence cases.

Ostergren said that state laws requiring mandatory minimum sentencing for drug offenses, most notably meth distribution and sales, have impacted Iowa's law enforcement.

"I feel comfortable in saying that the people committing these offenses in our community are going to jail," he said.

Ostergren and Allison agreed that tougher sentencing laws and more aggressive law enforcement in drug cases and domestic abuse have increased the caseload at the Muscatine County Courthouse. Allison speculated that recent state legislation creating more severe sex-offender laws could have a similar effect.

Despite the increased number of drug and domestic abuse cases, Dalton said she was unsure if the actual number of crimes in the community was rising, or if law enforcement was simply catching more criminals due to the crackdown.

"I don't know of any specific statistical information showing that mandatory sentences act as a deterrent," she said. "It can certainly have a chilling effect on those in the system."

Community help

The panelists also discussed community-based corrections programs, which they supported, although they expressed concerns about lack of program funding and how to determine which offenders would be best suited to such programs.

Community-based corrections programs can include drug rehabilitation and other programs designed for offenders to have an opportunity for transitional living.

Dalton said she liked community-based corrections programs, but often saw barriers in funding, available transportation and language obstructing the people who could use them. She added that mandatory sentencing could restrict judges from placing someone in a program by requiring specific penalties for drug offenses.

Madden supports community-based corrections programs, but said they would probably be best for drug and alcohol offenders and that sex offenders should not be put in such programs.

"The problem with community-based corrections is that they don't have time to watch all of these people. That's the negative part of it," Madden said. "Theoretically, it's a good program for younger people who haven't been in much trouble before."

Treatment and punishment

Law enforcement is doing its best to distinguish between the violent or profiteering drug offenders and the addicts who need help, panel members said.

Allison and Ostergren agreed that treatment was a good option for drug users, but that its effectiveness could be suspect.

"We try and distinguish the subsisting drug offender. Dealers are typically not candidates for treatment, it's more appropriate for users," Ostergren said. "The guy at home smoking pot and watching television is not being sent to prison."

Ostergren added that first- and second-time drug offenders are typically not sent to prison.

"Treatment is a great thing but it's not always effective unless the person has hit rock bottom," he said. "There's not much more rock bottom than prison."

Orr expanded on that thought, citing personal experiences with drug offenders after arrest.

"When you deal with users on a daily basis, especially meth users, you're seeing people who have hit rock bottom," he said. "Some say, I don't want to go to prison, but if I don't, I'll die.'"

Meth, Orr said, is "the most addictive and terrible drug I've ever seen."

Still other panel members said that treatment programs were underfunded at best, the available systems were flooded and prison might only offer short-term solutions as addicts will immediately return to using drugs upon release.

Baker said there were not enough adequate facilities to properly treat addicts, and that the state should implement more drug court programs.

"Meth is the current scourge, but before that, it was coke, and before that it was PCP," she said.

League of Women Voters member Marilyn Wedel said she found the forum "very informative."

"I liked listening to judge Madden's emphasis on keeping the public safe," she said. "So often people get caught up in the offender's rights and forget about the rights of the public."

Johannsen was also pleased by the forum, and said she saw a need for more funding, particularly for community-based corrections programs and treatment programs.

"There are some needs here that need to be addressed," she said.