Aerial drug searches

In response to the article published on Sept. 14 in the Bangor Daily News, concerning Democrat George Townsend; I feel compelled to write a response not only as a counselor at the Washington County Jail but also as an outreach service provider for those individuals who are released from incarceration.

Almost all incarcerated persons I have counseled were a direct result of drug and alcohol abuse. If we as a society curtail thc powers of law enforcement officials to search and seize areas where marijuana manifest and distribute in large quantities, that is a violation of our civil rights.

Most severe crimes in this country are directly related to drugs and alcohol. What message do we send our children when we institute programs of drug and alcohol awareness and on the other hand stop looking for its development?

I do feel that if marijuana is seized from anyone’s property there should be evidence that the persons or persons arrested would have been the caretakers of the crop, and evidence should portray that individuals arrested were seen tending and harvesting the crop.

I realize in Maine there are property owners concerned with the growth of marijuana on their property and wish to be exempt from arrest due to not having knowledge of marijuana being cultivated. So the question becomes which is more infringing on our civil rights, the inconvenience of the minority (crop growers), or the message we send out to the majority, which is DARE (Drug Awareness Resistent Education)? We have to follow through with our commitment to Maine’s youth.

As a professional, I believe that if we continue to support the decrease in aerial searches then our county jails as well as our state prison will continue to be overcrowded with individuals who have committed more violent crimes. Lisa B. Bell Machias