A War on Poor Drug Users of Color

1. A War on Poor Drug Users of Color Healing Seattle’s Most Vulnerable People Through Just & Sensible Drug Policy

2. Public Health Policy?:Dealing with Addicted Persons "SPD does not have the resources it needs to deal with street crimes like prostitution and drug dealing." Source: Mayor Greg Nickels, City of Seattle Mayor, Weekday (2nd hour), daily local news program on KUOW.org, April 12, 2004, http:// www.kuow.org. Select archives, choose program name &topic: Talking with the Mayor.

3. Public Health Policy?:Dealing with Addicted Persons "We are not going to arrest our way out of this problem. It's a social problem. It's a public health problem." Source: Chief Gil Kerlikowske, Seattle Police Department. Disparate Law Enforcement Forum, 2004 Black History Month Series, February 26, 2004. http://www.seattlechannel.org, go to Viewing Room, Watch Programs, Diverse City.

4. Framing the Issue of Addiction Drug addiction itself is not illegal. Use and delivery of prohibited drugs is illegal. What are prohibited drugs?

5. Public Health Care • When is drug addiction a public health issue? Treating illnesses of unhealthy uninsured people Reducing harms associated with risky (with regards to health) social behaviors, like preventing the spread of infectious diseases

6. Poor People’s Health Care Without money or medical insurance, poor people cannot pay for medical treatment (including mental health or substance abuse) they need. Rather, they must rely on the charity of primarily publicly-funded drug treatment programs, housing assistance, and mental health counseling to change their situation. Prognosis: Under-funded programs. 2005 developments.

7. Social Science & Addiction Long-term, frequent users, such as addicts, are likely to engage in delivery as part of their use.

8. Recent Past Practices of Drug Enforcement Between January 1999 and April 30, 2001, 76% of the drug deliverers that were arrested in Seattle outside were arrested for delivering crack cocaine.

9. Recent Mortality Data During that same time period, only 11% of people who overdosed in Seattle-King County only had cocaine in their system; 20% of people who overdosed had only heroin in their system. Cocaine-related deaths were 40% of all drug-related deaths; while heroin-related deaths accounted for fully 51% of all drug-related deaths.

10. Type of Drug Delivery Convictions, King County, 2002 Source: Vukich, Ed and Hon. Deborah Fleck, “Quantity and Sentencing: An Analysis of Drug Dealing Cases in King County,” 2003.

11. Drug Prohibition & Race Origins of Prohibition: Alcohol prohibited in 1919 as reaction to low-income European immigrants of late 19th and early 20th centuries drinking habits Cocaine prohibited following Reconstruction when it became associated with blacks Opium first prohibited in 1875 in California when it became associated with Chinese immigrant workers Marijuana prohibited in late 1930s when its use was associated with Mexicans.

12. Social Science & Addiction Poor addicts who delivery drugs are more likely to deliver drugs outside.

13. Criminalizing Addicts of Color Outside in Seattle Source: SPD Database, State v. Alfred K. Johnson, et al., January 1999- April 2001. Citywide 2,398 Delivery & PWI Arrests for 5 drugs by Race that where the premise type is known to be in the open.

14. Race & Public Space Research is currently underway by social scientists to examine whether there is a relationship between racial, ethnic, or cultural groups and public space independent of enforcement patterns or illicit activity

15. Criminalizing Addicts of Color In Public Indoor Space in Seattle Source: SPD Database, State v. Alfred K. Johnson, et al., January 1999- April 2001. Citywide 65 Delivery & PWI Arrests for 5 drugs by race that where the premise type is known to be inside a public building.

16. Social Science & Addiction Poor drug deliverers are also more likely to deliver drugs in small amounts.

17. What amount is prohibited by state law? • Any amount of prohibited drug is illegal. • All delivery under 2,000 grams (2 kilograms) is treated equally under the law. • Most enforcement against drug deliverers has been for outside delivery. • 1 gram is equivalent to a sugar packet.

18. Convicted Drug Deliverers: Amounts Source: Vukich, Ed and Hon. Deborah Fleck, “Quantity and Sentencing: An Analysis of Drug Dealing Cases in King County,” 2003.

19. Public Health Options within the Courts System • Drug Courts • Drug Offender Sentencing Alternative

20. Sentencing Costs, 2003 $62.70 (US) x 365x 3,217= Per day costs x days of the year x number of drug prisoners (as of March 2003). $73,622,653.50 (US) Source: Western Prison Project, Department of Corrections Fiscal Data, http://www.westernprisonproject.org

21. Disparate Prosecution of the War on Drugs If you were the Chief of Police of the department at issue in the Beckett report, what would you do if anything to address the concerns of the report?

22. Disparate Prosecution of the War on Drugs If you were the Mayor or a City Council member in the city at issue in the Beckett report, what would you do if anything to address the concerns of the report?

23. 2004-2005 Mayor’s Plan to Eliminate OUTDOOR drug markets • Neighborhood Corrections Initiative • Stay Out of Drug Area (SODA) program • NARCSTAT • Arrest and Referral system

24. Next Steps: The Budget for Justice Campaign For Effective Public Safety & Human Services in Seattle The “Budget for Justice” Coalition, Campaign 2004 African Youth United Minority Executive Director’s Coalition American Friends Service Committee NAACP Central House People’s Coalition for Justice Coalition Undoing Racism Everywhere People of Color Against AIDS Network Community Coalition for Environmental Justice People’s Institute NW Communities Against Rape & Abuse Racial Disparity Project Every Workers Movement Real Change Fellowship of Reconciliation Seattle Young People’s Project Japanese American Citizens’ League Street Outreach Services Justice Works!

25. Next Steps: The Budget for Justice Campaign For Effective Public Safety & Human Services in Seattle Goals of the Campaign: End racial disparity in the drug law enforcement in Seattle Stop the senseless prioritization of low-level drug arrests over other more effective public safety measures Support and fund programs that alleviate poverty, homelessness, and root causes of drug addiction among the population targeted for arrest and prosecution.

26. Contact Mayor or Chief of Police Greg Nickels Chief Gil Kerlikowske Mayor of the City of Seattle SPD Headquarters Mailing address: PO Box 94749 P.O. Box 34986 Seattle, WA 98124-4749 Seattle, WA 98124-4986 Greg.Nickels@Seattle.govGil.Kerlikowske@Seattle.gov Telephone: (206) 684-4000 Telephone: (206)684-5577

27. Next Steps: Contact City Council City Council of Seattle Mailing Address: P.O. Box 34025 Firstname.Lastname@seattle.gov Seattle, WA 98124-4025 Jean Godden Richard McIver, Budget Chair David Della Tom Rasmussen, Health Chair Jim Compton Nick Licata, Public Safety Chair Richard Conlin Jan Drago, Council President Peter Steinbrueck

28. Policy Discussion Brown Bag Lunch Discussion March 9, 2005 12 noon to 1:30pm at Council Chambers • What would an effective and just drug policy look like? • What strategies can be employed to move toward a more just drug policy?

29. Contact Us: The Defender Association’s Racial Disparity Project 810 Third Avenue Materials currently available on website: 800 Central Building http://www.defender.org/racial_disparity.html Seattle, Washington 98104 Project Attorneys: D’Adre Cunningham Lisa Daugaard 206-447-3900, ext. 759 206-447-3900, ext. 729 dadre.cunningham@defender.orglisadaugaard@yahoo.com Project Community Liaison: KL Shannon 206-447-3900, ext. 564 klorganizer@yahoo.com