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Editorial:
A
Tragedy
in
the
Capital
10/8/04
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle-old/357/tragedy.shtml
David Borden, Executive
Director, [email protected], 10/8/04
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David
Borden
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The District of Columbia
saw a tragedy this week. Jonathan Magbie, a 27-year old quadriplegic
medical marijuana patient, died while under the care of the DC court and
jail. Magbie had been arrested for marijuana possession, and Judge
Judith Retchin sentenced him to 10 days in jail, despite recommendations
from officials against it. Her reason? There was a loaded gun
in the car with him.
But Magbie didn't use the
gun on anyone. And now I've learned it wasn't even his.
Things went haywire immediately
after Magbie entered custody. He wound up getting sent back and forth
between the jail and the hospital. His mother was not allowed to
bring him his ventilator in jail, for two days. By the time the jail
finally agreed to it, it was too late.
I don't believe that any
of the officials involved in this debacle wanted what happened to happen.
Some combination of incompetence and/or overloading of the system and/or
poorly crafted regulations or procedures all combined to end Jonathan Magbie's
life. But that doesn't mean there's no one to blame.
Surely Judge Retchin shares
the blame. According to the Washington Post article, she is known
for harsh sentences. In a nation with two million prisoners, whose
incarceration rate has been criticized by prominent human rights organizations,
such an impulse is part of the problem. The attitude that drove her
to send a helpless, wheelchair-bound young man, who had hurt no one, to
jail, is a barbaric one that our society desperately needs to leave behind.
And knowing how dangerous the jails can be, even for the healthy and strong,
it was especially reckless. If she didn't understand that, it is
to her discredit.
Others are to blame too.
Why did the hospital send Magbie back to the jail and refuse to take him
back? Where did the miscommunications take place in the court and
jail? The more basic truth, though, is that gulags breed carelessness
and error.
It is too late to save Jonathan
Magbie -- the decision-makers who needed to do that didn't try hard enough.
But this sad episode must not be allowed to go gently into the night.
Magbie and his family deserve a full accounting, and a reflection on the
sad state of criminal justice in this country is long overdue. Let
it start here.
-- END --
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Issue #357, 10/8/04
Editorial: A Tragedy in the Capital |
Medical Marijuana Activists Besiege HHS, Demand Rescheduling |
Drug Policy and the Presidential Election -- Introduction |
The Election I: Bush and Kerry on Drugs: Past Records and Platform Planks |
The Election II: Drug Reformers on Kerry and Bush, Nader and Badnarik |
The Election III: DRCNet Interview: Independent Presidential Candidate Ralph Nader |
The Election IV: DRCNet Interview: Michael Badnarik, Libertarian Party Presidential Candidate (repeat) |
Newsbrief: Supreme Court Hears Oral Arguments in Critical Federal Sentencing Cases |
Newsbrief: Needle Exchange Bill Passes New Jersey Assembly |
Newsbrief: Protests Rise over Award as Thai Prime Minister Prepares for New Round of Drug War |
Newsbrief: Bolivia's Chapare Cocaleros Sign Historic Agreement with Government |
Newsbrief: DEA Pulls Prescription Pain Medicine FAQs Without Explanation |
Newsbrief: Hemp Crops in Western Australia Stymied By Licensing Requirements |
Newsbrief: Atlanta Cops Use Forfeited Funds to Buy Bigger Guns |
Newsbrief: No Asset Forfeiture for Misdemeanor Drug Charges, Tennessee Says |
Newsbrief: Texas DA Says Doctors Must Turn In Drug-Using Pregnant Women |
Newsbrief: Another Killer Cop Walks Free |
Newsbrief: This Week's Corrupt Cops Stories |
This Week in History |
Administrative Assistant: Part-Time Job Opportunity at DRCNet |
The Reformer's Calendar
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This issue -- main page
This issue -- single-file printer version
Drug War Chronicle -- main page
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