Florida Governor Rick Scott vetoes a bill which would have sent non-violent drug offenders to rehab after serving half their sentence in jail. It was supported 40-0 in the House and 112-4 in the Senate.
Florida Governor Rick Scott on Friday vetoed a widely popular bill that would send certain non-violent drug addicts to treatment after serving half their sentences.
“He said it was a ‘public safety’ issue. No it’s not,” said bill sponsor Sen. Ellyn Bogdanoff (R-Fort Lauderdale) according to the Miami Herald. “These are non-violent drug offenders.”
The bill, a rare common sense favorite during a legislative season that saw Scott approve dying animals and Jay-Z lyrics debated on the House floor, was opposed by only four state lawmakers.
Sold on Bogdanoff’s argument that the state would save money by getting potential re-offenders the help they need for addiction, lawmakers including typically tough-on-crime conservatives overwhelmingly sped the bill through the House 40-0 and the Senate 112-4.
But though offenders would remain in custody during the rehabilitation portion of their sentences, Scott said in his veto statement that the bill would violate laws against early release — and be an injustice to “victims.”
I honestly wonder if this has something to do with private prisons.
