PRESCRIPTION DRUG ADDICTS DESERVE HELP, LENIENCY

This morning I was shocked to read that Cindy Eubanks, a school resource officer at the high school I graduated last year, pleaded guilty to two counts of common-law forgery and was sentenced to 90 days in county lock-up for duplicating legitimate prescriptions for the painkiller OxyContin after she had become addicted to the drug during the course of her treatment.

Eubanks, a 15-year veteran of the New Bern Police Department, lost her job patrolling the 1,800-student high school and, according to her attorney, will never work in law enforcement again. Although I by no means condone her irresponsible behavior, I believe putting Eubanks behind bars is a gross overreaction and an abuse of our nation's stringent anti-drug laws.

Conclusive research has proven OxyContin to be extremely addictive, and one wonders why the Food and Drug Administration approved it for medical use knowing the vast potential for abuse. Eubanks was prescribed the drug legitimately, and since she developed the addiction through no fault of her own--by following doctor's orders, in fact--should we as a society throw the book at her?

A more humane and understanding solution would be to assign Eubanks to a mandatory stay in a drug rehab clinic and put her on probation with regularly scheduled and surprise drug tests. Prison never rehabilitates anybody; it makes the violent criminals more dangerous and it often causes people of conscience to forever lose their moral compass.

District Court Judge Paul Quinn, who sentenced Eubanks to prison, failed in his duty as a jurist to consider extenuating circumstances. Instead of showing mercy and leniency, Quinn has set a legal precedent for harshly punishing addicts who have had addictive drugs handed to them by trusted doctors. It's the ultimate bait-and-switch, and the injured deserve better than a painkiller with a possible prison sentence attached.