NYT: Albany Reaches Deal to Repeal '70s Drug Laws

[Captain Hilts]

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/26/nyregion/26rockefeller.html?hp

Gov. David A. Paterson and New York legislative leaders have reached an agreement to dismantle much of what remains of the state’s strict 1970s-era drug laws, once among the toughest in the nation.

The deal would repeal many of the mandatory minimum prison sentences now in place for lower-level drug felons, giving judges the authority to send first-time nonviolent offenders to treatment instead of prison.

The plan would also expand drug treatment programs and widen the reach of drug courts at a cost of at least $50 million.

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

1. That is excellent news and will free up a lot of money in my state. Decriminalization of pot

possession has been on the books for decades. The State Assembly voted to legalize medical marijuana last year but the State Senate didn't even put it to vote. Maybe that will happen now?

[MagickMuffin]

2. Maybe it will PASS this time

Since then, the Assembly, which is dominated by Democrats, has routinely passed legislation that repealed mandatory minimum sentences for many drug crimes. But the bills always failed to get past the Senate, which was controlled by Republicans until January.