Ecstasy:
After
the
Fact,
Wisconsin
Legislator
Seeks
to
Stiffen
Penalties
2/16/06
The use of the popular psychedelically-tinged stimulant Ecstasy (MDMA) peaked shortly after the turn of the century, according to the standard measures of drug use in the US, but that isn't stopping Wisconsin Rep. Gene Hahn (R-Cambria) from going after the drug, no matter how far behind the curve he is. Hahn introduced a bill last week that would stiffen penalties for Ecstasy possession and sale in the Badger State.
Hahn's bill comes two years after a similar effort died in the legislature and despite testimony from law enforcement and prosecutors suggesting it wasn't that big a problem -- at least not anymore. "We had a fairly significant problem with it, and we struggled with that problem because it involves mostly young people," Columbia County Sheriff's Detective Lt. Wayne Smith told a committee hearing. "Lately, other prescription drugs have really overtaken the whole segment of users. Where we would have seen ecstasy with a younger person, we're now seeing heroin and OxyContin or oxycodone." While prosecutors from Dane and Dodge counties said the drug was still prevalent in their counties, Marquette County District Attorney Richard Dufour said he had prosecuted only one or two people in for it in recent years. "It's not a major problem we've had," he said. Those comments are in line with national figures suggesting Ecstasy peaked several years back. "The number of current users of Ecstasy remained the same in 2004 (450,000) as it had been in 2003 (470,000), after it had decreased significantly between 2002 (676,000) and 2003," noted the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration in its latest National Survey on Drug Use and Health. Similarly, the Monitoring the Future survey of teenagers found that life-time use among high-school seniors declined by more than half since 2000, with 11.7% reporting having tried it that year, compared to 5.4% in 2004. But that isn't stopping Hahn. "This Ecstasy is not in the proper category for penalties and fines," he warned. With people facing only 30 days in jail for possessing it, "there are folks who are not giving too much thought to purchasing or selling ecstasy." Time is running short for Hahn and his Ecstasy bill in this year's legislative session. Still, Hahn said he believes the bill is on a fast track to passage, after already having had a committee hearing.
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