Governor Rod R. Blagojevich
Office of the Governor
207 State House
Springfield, IL 62706
Dear Governor Blagojevich,
I’m a taxpayer, voter, and 40-year resident of Illinois. I’m writing to thank you for signing SB3007, which mitigates the damage to people’s lives as a result of a minor criminal conviction. It was so very much the right thing to do.
I hope you continue to make more changes along these lines. In particular, incarcerating people who commit victimless crimes seems wasteful and unnecessary. The Illinois justice system seems to recognize this in certain matters, such as prostitution and gambling, for which harsh sentences are rarely given. But when it comes to drug crimes, we still seem to be following a wasteful policy of lengthy imprisonment.
I doubt jail does much to cure drug abuse, but it does cure people of being able to get jobs. Aside from the effects of a criminal record on employability, I doubt that people jailed as teenagers will re-enter the workforce after jail with any kind of work ethic. Long prison terms break people.
Long prison terms cost a lot of money too. When I hear stories of people getting five years in jail for small-scale drug crimes, it irritates me to think that taxpayers are going to have to cough up about $100,000 for that. I can think of better and more productive ways to spend the money.
I ask you, and urge you, to do what you can to move Illinois toward a more compassionate program of treatment for drug offenders. Like SB3007, it’s the right thing to do.
Sincerely,
Mark Draughn
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