ROCKEFELLER DRUG LAWS

New York legislators were concerned about the influx of drugs and how they were tearing communities apart during the late 1960s and early 1970s. Drugs were accessible to nearly everyone on the streets and it spread like wildfire prompting legislators to react swiftly before the problem got out of control. Statistics showed that 560,000 users were on drugs nationwide. Even the police department saw a thirty one percent increase in drug related arrests during that time. Gov. Nelson Rockefeller who was a liberal Republican enacted the Narcotic Addiction and Control Commission which was geared towards aiding addicts get clean. Once the program proved to be inept, New York launched the Methadone Maintenance Program. This program failed as well because it didnt deter addicts from using. In 1973, calls for stricter penalties had grown too loud to ignore, prompting Albany to enact legislation that created mandatory minimum sentences of 15 years to life for possession of four ounces of narcotics — which is the same as a sentence for second-degree murder. The statutes became known as the Rockefeller Drug Laws — which we are all too familiar with. New York Department of Corrections had saw a swift increase of prisoners jump from 11% in 1973 to 35% in 1994. Low level drug offenders received harsh penalties as a direct result of these laws inhibiting judges to use their discretion when sentencing offenders. People with no priors received mandatory 15 years on convictions related to drugs which posed a problem as prison population doubled. I was incarcerated during these times and saw the constant influx of prisoners, especially first time non-violent offenders receive unfair sentencing. If they fit the stereotype, it didnt matter. They were going to be Suspended in Time for a very long time. Although there was an increase in drug convictions, crime was still abundant in the streets. In January, during his State of the State address, New York Gov. David Paterson said: "I can't think of a criminal justice strategy that has been more unsuccessful than the Rockefeller Drug Laws."
This law has since been rescinded and ammended by Gov. Pataki in 2004 after increasing pressure from activists. People like Russell Simmons and many others have stood up for the cause stating that there is a racial disparity with the law which targeted Blacks and Latinos. Ninety five percent of those Suspended In Time for drug related offenses were black and hispanic. While whites received a slap on the wrist for having cocaine on their person. The Rockefeller Laws is one of the biggest debacles in the history of the United States. I say that for the mere fact that it targeted those who were drug dealers trying to find means to sustain themselves. When there are no jobs and ex-offenders are discriminated against for their past they are forced into a system that has no love for them. People are going to do what they know best in order to survive. Society has forced them into a matrix and once caught they are penalized for the very same system that got them in that position to begin with. I dont think its fair and I've seen for myself first hand the damage the Rockefeller Laws has caused. Young kids were railroaded time and time again as a result of this. Although the sentencing guidelines has been reduced to 8 to 20 years under the new laws, there are alot of families suffering from the fiasco put in place over thirty years ago from the Rockefeller Drug Laws. If you want to target the Nino Browns of the world, then target them but don't take an entire village of young kids. They're better off in a treatment program as opposed to being in prison. These kids are used at the expense of kingpins since they are fascinated with material wealth. Those who were sentenced prior to the amendment are still Suspended in Time hoping on lighter sentencing from their appeals. Judges now have more discretion in sentencing by eliminating mandatory minimums for some higher-level drug offenders and making lower level offenders eligible for treatment. This is a step in a positive direction but the damage has already been done....