Guest Author
On the morning of Oct. 30, the Florida Department of Corrections told a legislative appropriations committee that it would need $58 million in the 2014-15 budget to meet the needs of a burgeoning prison population.
Less than 12 hours earlier, Congressman Trey Radel, R-Ft. Myers, was caught purchasing cocaine from an undercover police officer in Washington, D.C.
Radel admitted his wrongdoing, pled guilty and was sentenced to one year of probation.
If he had been caught committing that crime in Florida, it’s possible he would have been sent to prison. And if he were black and had a public defender, it’s not just possible, but likely.
His charge? A misdemeanor drug possession.
The Washington Post reported that a U.S. Attorney’s office spokesperson said Radel received the same punishment as many other people facing the same charge. In 2012, he said, nearly 700 people were charged with misdemeanor cocaine possession in the District.
“Only a small fraction received any jail time as a result,” the spokesperson wrote in an email.
And so Radel will undergo treatment and not become a burden on the taxpayers of Washington, D.C.
A stark contrast to Florida, where we spend hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars housing criminals just like Radel (well, except for the skin color and the privileged upbringing).
It is a third-degree felony to possess cocaine in Florida. The crime carries any combination of the following penalties: five years of probation, a fine of up to $5,000 and five years in prison.
That’s correct, five years in prison. For the same crime that Radel will serve one year of probation.
Incidentally, Radel gave the cop $260 for the coke. If he’d possessed $260 worth of pot in Florida, he also would be guilty of a third-degree felony.
So now, the Florida Department of Corrections is suggesting we open prisons that were closed just a few years ago in order to accommodate an increasing population of prisoners, many of whom are no danger to society.
Does this make sense to anyone?
Radel still has to answer a slew of questions, such as:
— how long has he been using drugs?
— has he used them around his children?
— and was he high when he voted to give states the right to administer drug tests to Food Stamp recipients?
One question he won’t have to answer, unlike many of his fellow Florida residents: where will his family visit him in prison?
As part of his apology, Radel offered that “I do believe in faith, forgiveness and redemption.”
It will be interesting to see if his colleagues in the Florida Legislature can find it within themselves to the same thing. The right thing.
