Trumbull County, OH--“Being a drug addict should not be a crime in the state of Ohio,” says State Senator John Eklund, who represents Geauga, Lake and Portage County.
Senators Sean O'Brien and John Eklund both represent districts in Northeast Ohio hit hard by the opioid epidemic. They’re talking to law enforcement, judges and the public across the state to push for Senate Bill 3.
- Two Ohio Senators are pushing bi-partisan drug reform.
- Senate Bill 3 is currently going through committee hearings
- The bill calls for reducing possession of small amounts of drugs to misdemeanors.
The measure toughens penalties for traffickers and changes what is defined as possession.
"Trafficking could be established strictly by possession of a certain amount of a drug. That is to say, no need to demonstrate that a drug was sold, that it was packaged or that it was prepared for sale,” says Eklund.
Under Senate Bill 3, possession of small amounts of drugs like heroin and cocaine would be reduced to misdemeanors.
The current law says fourth or fifth degree felonies are punishable anywhere from a year to a year and a half in prison.
The bill also calls for added help for addicts—expanding the types of facilities where they can be sent for court-ordered treatment
“If this bill is passed, or something like it and it has the desired effect of placing people into treatment instead of a cell somewhere, then, providing that treatment is going to require financial resources,” says Eklund.
Although northeastern Ohio reports a decrease in opioid prescriptions, when it comes to heroin, there's still more work to be done.
“It's also seen an increase in high grade marijuana, methamphetamine and cocaine. And certainty there's an ongoing issue with fentanyl. So we say often, the drug of the day might change, but that should not change our impact in addressing the substance use disorder, whatever that drug might be,” says Mahoning County Court of Common Pleas Judge John Durkin.
“We don't want these people dying on our watch. Sometimes you can't help it. But you do everything possible. And I think this bill is something, you know, i'm still on the fence about it, but it brings up the conversation,” says Girard Municipal Court Judge Jeffrey Adler.
Lawmakers have tried for years to reduce Ohio's prison population.
More than 1,500 people are currently in our state's prisons for low-level drug possession.
Defense lawyers say Senate Bill 3 is a start.
“Sometimes it's difficult to process things that we see coming out of Columbus and coming out of the legislature that don't seem to make sense to us that are on the front lines. And it is tremendously refreshing to sit down with these two senators and know that they are really listening to what we have to say,” says Trumbull County Defense Attorney Jeffrey Goodman.
Senate Bill 3 has been drafted and is currently going through committee.