Kudos to Attorney General Peter Neronha for 2 thoughtful pieces of legislation. His first bill would reduce simple possession of 1 ounce or less of a controlled substance (other than marijuana where possession of a similar amount is a civil violation) to a misdemeanor. At present under Rhode Island law simple possession is a felony punishable by up to 3 years in prison and a fine of up to $5000. The Attorney General’s legislation would reduce the offense to up to one year in jail and a fine of up to $500. Drug dealers will still be prosecuted as felons.

The Attorney General recognizes that imprisoning drug users for simple possession advances neither public health nor public safety. Research further documents that effective treatment for substance use disorders can lead to recovery. The collateral effects of imprisonment are counterproductive. Incarcerated people reenter society with a social stigma that hinders them from getting a job, securing housing, and supporting their families. By lifting these barriers to successful reentry through treatment rather than punishment society benefits by having productive citizens who can contribute anew to society.

With the burgeoning opioid addiction the public is becoming more accepting of treatment as an option to imprisonment, and well it should. Correctional costs are also mitigated. Further, law enforcement can then focus on violent crime and drug traffickers so it is a cost effective proposal. For Mr. Neronha’s legislation to be effective a coterie of people i.e. prosecutors, police, and health and mental care professionals must team together to make rehabilitation a reality.

The Attorney General is also advocating allowing the release of grand jury material when it advances the public interest in a forward looking fashion through recommendations that will improve the lives of citizens. Indigenous to the release would be certain safeguards that require the majority of grand jurors to concur with the release, the report being delivered to the presiding justice of the Superior Court who would review the matter and who would notify anyone mentioned in the report to review it for any response he/she may want to make, and then the court would decide whether to release it in whole or in part . Personal information would be omitted, no confidential informants would be identified and steps would be taken to insure no prejudice to pending criminal matters.

In 1985, as Attorney General, I essentially followed these steps by petitioning then Chief Justice Anthony Giannini to allow the release of the grand jury report involving my office’s probe of the Rhode Island Housing and Mortgage Corporation (RIHMFC). There was rampant misuse of funds. Mortgages were given to those who didn’t qualify financially and, in some cases, the applicant was not a first time home purchaser as required by the program. The program gave out mortgages to judges, politically connected people, the parents of a bank president, etc. The Board had little or no oversight and acted as a rubber stamp. The rub which made prosecution impossible of many (although there were some successful prosecutions on other grounds) who secured ill-gotten mortgages, was that the attestation under oath of facts previously required to get a loan was omitted on the misfeasors’ applications, so perjury charges were not an option. Chief Judge Giannini agreed that this ploy of the politically connected should be exposed. Mr. Neronha is proposing to make this option permanent with guidelines.

Arlene Violet is an attorney and former Rhode Island Attorney General.