O'Malley Mulls Veto of Parole Eligibility Bill
May 14, 2007
Baltimore Sun
Gov. Martin O'Malley, considering the first veto of his administration, said today he was "leaning away" from signing a bill to allow twice-convicted drug dealers the possibility of parole, instead of a mandatory minimum 10-year prison sentence.
Bill supporters have argued the measure would enable people to get out of prison and into drug treatment programs, which aren't widely available in prison.
But O'Malley, who said he hasn't decided yet for certain whether he will veto the measure, said he had doubts the bill would create better options for drug treatment, which he supports.
"There's a lot more we can and need to do, but I don't see where this bill does that," O'Malley said.
Rick Abbruzzese, an O'Malley spokesman, said a decision likely would be made this week on the bill.
The measure was a contentious one in the General Assembly. It initially failed in the House by one vote, but supporters were able to bring the measure back to be reconsidered, passing it 78-59.
Supporters argued the bill was crafted to help people who were selling drugs to support their own habits. Maryland has been trying too long, they contended, to incarcerate its way out of the problem of drug addiction. But opponents said all the bill does is let repeat drug offenders out of jail sooner.
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