Last updated on February 1, 2005.

An overwhelming 78% of voters in Washington DC voted for Measure 62 on the November 2002 ballot. In line with other "treatment instead of incarceration" initiatives implemented in California and Arizona, this measure will provide substance abuse treatment instead of imprisonment to eligible non-violent, first or second time defendants charged with illegal possession or use of drugs.

The duration of treatment will be for one year with six months after care. Treatment may include job training, family counseling, anger management and quality drug treatment. Once a person has successfully completed treatment, they can request that their record be expunged.

There are currently 10,000 persons in the District receiving treatment of the 60,000 who need it. Studies also show that of the 3,100 DC children who are placed in foster care, 70% are there, directly or indirectly due to drug addiction. Under this measure, people are kept with their families, so children don't have to go into foster care as they would if their caretakers were imprisoned. In addition, providing local treatment instead of jailing is beneficial because it will not interrupt the employment of offenders who have jobs.

Although more than 86,000 DC residents voted to enact Measure 62, it only took four people to overturn it - three judges and DC Mayor Anthony Williams. The Mayor challenged the measure in court, arguing that it interfered with the city’s spending authority by allocating funds for drug treatment - even though the city did not spend a single dollar. In reality, Measure 62 gives the District the option of funding treatment while keeping certain offenders out of prison if treatment slots are not available. A judge sided with the Mayor last year, but we appealed the case. This January, an appeals court rubber-stamped the judge’s ruling and ordered the measure to be overturned.

The Drug Policy Alliance Network is going to spend this year lobbying the city council to pass legislation that will keep non-violent drug offenders out of jail. We’re optimistic about our chances of success because we have almost 80% of DC voters on our side. If for some reason the city council fails to act this year, we will likely put a measure on the 2006 ballot that the mayor cannot block. (The mayor will also be up for re-election in 2006, so we believe he will support reform this year to avoid having to deal with an embarrassing ballot measure next year).