City officials urge residents to vote no on Issue 1

COSHOCTON – Coshocton County Prosecutor Jason Given, Judge Bob Batchelor and Sheriff Tim Rogers are urging residents to vote no on Issue I, a state wide issue which will appear on the Tuesday, Nov. 6 ballot.

“This is poorly drafted and a bad idea,” Batchelor said during a press conference held Sept. 20 in the common pleas courtroom at the court house. “It will keep us from using incarceration as a tool to deter addicts.”

They also do not like the fact that the amendment would, “Mandate that criminal offenses of obtaining, possessing, or using any drug such as fentanyl, heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine, LSD, and other controlled substances cannot be classified as a felony, but only a misdemeanor.”

“It makes no distinction in the amount (of drugs) that a person possesses,” Given said. “You could have a thousand pounds of heroin and it would be a misdemeanor. Just two ounces of fentanyl alone is enough to kill the entire population of Coshocton County and two milligrams can cause a person to overdose. Two milligrams is only enough to cover Abraham Lincoln’s beard on the penny. Drugs can become a weapon of mass destruction in our communities if we have no threat of incarceration. ”

He also was upset with the sentence reductions that come with the amendment, which states, “Require sentence reductions of incarcerated individuals, except individuals incarcerated for murder, rape, or child molestation, by up to 25% if the individual participates in rehabilitative, work, or educational programming.”

“That is not the job of a constitutional amendment,” Given said. “That is the judge’s decision.”

Rogers said if this passes it is going to create a new set of problems with drugs in Ohio.

“This is a bad idea and we should not allow it to proceed,” he said. “It will change our community and not for the better.”

Lt. Dean Hettinger agreed with Rogers.

“We get so many calls because someone is so messed up they are being a nuisance or putting themselves or others in harm’s way,” he said. “Getting them on possession and putting them in jail is sometimes the only way we can get them help.”

Tyra Ross from Coshocton Behavioral Health Choices also spoke at the conference.

“Without the help of the legal system addicts are not going to come to us for help for a long time if even at all,” she said. “Our drug courts also will lose their effectiveness and some people really need that extra accountability and support.”

Here is a look at how Issue 1 will appear on your ballot:

Issue 1

To reduce penalties for crimes of obtaining, possessing, and using illegal drugs

Proposed Constitutional Amendment

Proposed by Initiative Petition

To add a new Section 12 to Article XV of the Constitution of the State of Ohio

A majority yes vote is necessary for the amendment to pass.

If adopted, the amendment would:

• Require sentence reductions of incarcerated individuals, except individuals incarcerated for murder, rape, or child molestation, by up to 25% if the individual participates in rehabilitative, work, or educational programming.
• Mandate that criminal offenses of obtaining, possessing, or using any drug such as fentanyl, heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine, LSD, and other controlled substances cannot be classified as a felony, but only a misdemeanor.
• Prohibit jail time as a sentence for obtaining, possessing, or using such drugs until an individual’s third offense within 24 months.
• Allow an individual convicted of obtaining, possessing, or using any such drug prior to the effective date of the amendment to ask a court to reduce the conviction to a misdemeanor, regardless of whether the individual has completed the sentence.
• Require any available funding, based on projected savings, to be applied to state-administered rehabilitation programs and crime victim funds.
• Require a graduated series of responses, such as community service, drug treatment, or jail time, for minor, non-criminal probation violations.

Category: Government