A "Dying Wish'' For Rockefeller Reform

One item that doesn’t seem to be getting anywhere this year is further reform of the Rockefeller Drug Laws and that hasn’t gone unnoticed by activist Anthony Papa, a former drug convict/inmate turned author and spokesman for the Drug Policy Alliance.

Papa recently posted this plea on behalf of Veronica Flournoy, who is serving time for a drug conviction but who is also a mother who is dying of lung cancer.

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  1. John Tabarin says:

    Here’s the mind of a conservative on this: Her story illustrates 1) the wrongs of the Rockefeller Drug Laws harshly punishing drug addicts in the mistaken belief that punishment is what suits addicts and society best; 2) the tragedies of our prison healthcare system because we are unwilling to give them the same care we want for ourselves; 3) lives weighed down by a mother in prison; and 4) politicians unwillingness to deal with 1 – 3 because treating prisoners and drug addicts with respect may come across as liberal. She doesn’t belong in jail or deserve to die from lack of care (healthcare and compassion that refers to).

  2. Ed Rooney says:

    John, where are you getting your information? Based on Rick’s story alone you seem to be reading a lot into it.

    Is Veronica Flournoy’s punishment excessive? What did she do? How long is she in?

    Is anyone claiming her lung cancer was caused/exacerbated by her prison healthcare?

    How old are her children? Are they better off with her or without her? We all know kids who would be better off without one or both of their biological parents.

    I wouldn’t be surprised if all your assumptions turn out to be true, otherwise she wouldn’t be picked as a representative of the problem (I agree it’s a problem), but you are taking Rick’s story to a completely different place.

  3. silverbrunogate2008 says:

    Veronica is in jail because of her actions and decisions. The editorial column, from the Huffington Post, does not refute those facts. 8 years to life does not seem like the book was thrown at her… regardless of what that brite bulb PAPA says. A drug addicted, drug runner ought not be considered a parent in my book. If the prison system, somehow, mistreated her condition, that is a whole other story and reason to complain. As for her crime and punishment, she got what she deserved in the legal realm. No one deserves cancer, but one has nothing to do with the other… just a thought… perhaps the CRACK might have played a role in the lung cancer, but who knows… I pray she gets better in every sense of the word.

  4. SmokinJoe says:

    #3 …. Hate filled jerk, perfect example why the gop is now TOTALLY IRRELEVANT!!!

  5. Andrew C. White says:

    The United States approach to the drug problem in America has been a dismal failure. The evidence is overwhelmingly clear.

    One of the biggest problems we face as a ntion to solving this failure is the prevelance of the “tough on crime” rhetoric of the “law and order” crowd that makes it virtually impossible to have honest, open, rational and realistic discussions about different options that may be available to solve this horrendous problem.

    The Rockefellar drug laws and other mandatory sentencing laws of this sort are simply prime examples of this failure to honestly address the problem of drugs (and other crime) in our society.

    It harms us all. It endangers our kids, our families, our nation.

    It is time to put the political rhetoric and diatribes aside and start investigating real solutions to a very real and devastating prooblem in America today.

  6. Ed Rooney says:

    #4. Emotion filled jerk, perfect example why benign questions cannot be asked on touchy subjects.

  7. silverbrunogate2008 says:

    Joe, there are those who pray and those who prey… keep up the attacks… your lack of substance comes through loud and clear… White is right, the outdated laws need to be changed, but she is not a prime example of the law gone wrong. How is an condoning an 8 year sentence for a drug runner a hateful sentence or agreeing with it a hateful sentiment. How is saying a drugged out criminal is not a fit mother hateful, imagine being a kid sentenced to an upbringing in a drug infested home… that is hateful. Jow you can tag along with me anytime as I go through my day… feel free. . My level of hate for my fellow man will be evident… Talk in facts if you can, not hateful, reactive rhetoric you pathetic little boy of a man.

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