NEWS FLASH

Gov. Chris Christie Signs Bill To Expand Drug Treatment And Eliminate Jail Time For Non-Violent Drug Offenders | New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) signed a bill yesterday to amend his state’s approach toward drug offenders, requiring drug treatment rather than jail time for low-level, non-violent offenders. The measure’s co-sponsors anticipate that it will add an estimated 1,500 inmates to New Jersey’s drug courts in the first year. Gov. Christie, who has referred to the War on Drugs as a “failure,” said he believes rehabilitation programs rather than jail sentences are the most effective way to combat drug use: “What we’re dealing with most people here is an addiction, an illness that needs to be treated as such.”