West Virginia Mayor "Relieved" Over Son's Drug Arrest

[Jabberwocky]

Charleston Mayor Danny Jones believes jail could save his addicted son's life.

Charleston West Virginia Mayor Danny Jones says he is "relieved" over his son's cocaine arrest, believing jail could save his life. Zac Jones, 23, was arrested Thursday for possession with the intent to distribute an ounce of cocaine. "It may surprise many to know that I was relieved when I found out Zac was arrested, because I know that the only things that might save his life are isolation and yes, incarceration," says the mayor in a statement.

"If in jail or prison, I know that Zac has a better chance at living than on the outside. This is because Zac is a hopeless drug addict who has broken the heart and the will of everyone and anyone who has tried to help him." Zac Jones has been arrested twice before, once in 2010 for possession of heroin, and once for driving under the influence in 2008. His father says he has never used his political clout to bail him out, and even clued in the cops to his whereabouts before his 2010 arrest.

"I know there are a few parents that will read this and relate to the heartbreak I feel," says the mayor. "I plead with those in the law enforcement, judicial, and jail and prison system to treat my son no better or worse than any other defendant. My son does not need anyone to save him from taking this life saving fall."

http://www.thefix.com/content/west-virginia-mayor-drug-addict-son1376

Fucking sick. I honestly hope this guy dies on the way home from his office or whatever today. Like he gets hit by a car and, just prior to getting stabilized by the EMTs treating him in their ambulance, a stray bullet from a gang shooting randomly hits the ambulance - and this dick in it - right in the forehead, killing him after being in total agony because the EMTs didn't have the proper analgesics or whatnot on bored and had to do everything sans sedation/anesthesia.

But seriously, this story, this guy and his fucked up perspective, this is the perfect embodiment of why/how fucked up our war on drugs, drug policy, drug law enforcement, criminal justice system, etc. etc., is. How, provided with the opportunity, encourages people like this, this mother fucking psychopath-in-sheep's-clothing, to act in truly inhumane, draconian ways. And then REWARDS them for acting so!

Sick. So. Mother. Fucking. Disgusting. Fucking sick.

I can relate because his attitude is something I once experienced from one of my close family members. Luckily in my case they've since come to realize how they were being manipulated by others for purely selfish motives and financial and moral greed and have since come around to the obviously more human objective of empathy, love and self respect.

 

[blueheaven]

Wow. What a dick.

 

[Mysterie]

thank god i dont live in charleston

its strange how people can have 50 yrs life experience and think that drug addiction is a criminal matter, not a public health issue.

 

[alanwatts]

Danny can now bask in the glory that his state is now the USA's most Obese, having
taken the load off of 2nd place Mississippi. Nothing unhealthy about that now is there?

 

[Hobble]

If his son is still doing drugs after having already been arrested twice(although I do agree with the one for DUI), why would he think the third time is going to "save his life"? It appears to have only gotten worse, since the previous arrest was for posession and this one's for intent to distribute. It just looks to me like this man cares more about his public image, than he does for his son.

 

[Jabberwocky]

thank god i dont live in charleston

its strange how people can have 50 yrs life experience and think that drug addiction is a criminal matter, not a public health issue.

Well said!

It's hard for a lot of us more "progressive" types, but we should always remember: Officially drug use, illegal (ab)use and addiction, etc., these are all considered by the state by public safety issues. Not as primarily public health issues. Which is just one of the reasons that, although it has made a huge difference, the who attempt at promoting a more complete, nuanced and accurate understanding of drug (ab)use and addiction via the disease model, is at the end of the day left more or less impotent. In other words, given that the disease model operates within a framework that denies this same model by treating the issues as primarily one of public safety - for the policy, court, prisons and jails much more so than the insane asylums and mental health institutions, let alone formal drug largely 12 Step based rehabs and those other more experience/clinically based professional treatment programs. Even when armed with what works best in terms of treatment, such tools are much, much less useful than they'd be in a context that recognizes their legitimacy. Anyways I'm just ranting out loud...

 

[23536]

its strange how people can have 50 yrs life experience and think that drug addiction is a criminal matter, not a public health issue.

No, I think this guy honestly believes that prisons are a type of hospital.

As do the respondents to that article!

He really loves his kid. He is probably getting the best sleep he's had in a while knowing where his son is at and that's he safe.

He is really in a position now to help us spread awareness of the Heroin EPIDEMIC sweeping the country. We need HELP!!!!!!!! Our kids are DYING!

God bless you Danny Jones, and God bless Zac.

It does beg the question: What is best for people who are severely dependent on substances and unwilling to moderate their use, even in the face of physical, social, vocational and financial disintegration?

 

[Jabberwocky]

Good points 23536! Prisons, incarceration as punishment, is historically speaking a VERY modern concept, not really taking off until the 18-1900s. Aside from punishment, deterrence, vengance, retribution, etc, a large motivation for the use of prisons as punishment was the idea of rehabiliations. So prisons were instruments as least in theory that would serve and function to rehabilitate criminals. Of course, the ideas about what constituted rehabilitation widely varied. The most successful even by current day standards was an early prison-farm in CT. As was one of the most draconian, a prison where inmates were rehabilitated through being forced to live and work inside a large mine.

In this this second example, the prison was essentially a large mine (and this was one if not the first prison in America). Living and working in complete, unventilated darkness, spending 100% of their time inside, the only connection to the outside being a rope and bucket, with little food, no sanitation or hygiene, proponents argued that through hard work prisoners would become rehabilitated into good citizens who would benefit society.

Of course the mine example of how draconian rehabilitation really was when it comes to prisons was the standard, still is, the rule and not the exception (as was the prison farm, which actually was hardly a prison as we think of them today, where inmates learned vocational schools and lived under humane conditions).

The history of prisons is a fascinating subject, if as complex as interesting (not to mention pertinent topic given the current state of mass incarceration in the US and what I like the call the failure of the liberal paradigm of justice (the liberal paradigm of justice, a philosophical or political science phrase, is the incarnation of political liberalism, a brand of political philosophy, that all official political groups/ideologies, from the tea party to Obama's supporters, libertarians to conservatives, etc. etc., according to their tenants and values, all belong to, whether they associate with the umbrella term that is "political liberalism" and that they fall under or realize how its reference is infinitely more complex than just what people think of when they use the word "liberal" according to its current day political meanings)).

But I digress... AGAIN :D

 

[Pretty_Diamonds]

So no rehab for the poor guy?

 

[Captain.Heroin]

So no rehab for the poor guy?

I don't think drug dealers need rehab.

If he was able to sling an oz of blow, he isn't poor either TBH.

 

[Jabberwocky]

Yes true, despite the fact the that his dad's a douche (and who knows whether his son is too, cause as they say like father like some) he does have some things going for him. He's white (I have no direct evidence off the top of my mind, but you could probably get some easily, as I assume that the this douche's child was conceived using a "white" or "Caucasian" egg, ovaries, sperm, etc. So he's got white privilege working to his side. So too is the fact hat, despite that fact he doesn't seem to give a shit about his son as stated in this article, his son is still the child of a powerful political figure (I assume this dick's "powerful" to some significant degree). Directly or (and/or) indirectly, I'm sure that will help this asshole's son out when compared to folks lucky enough to be part of the white race or benefit from white privilege...

Again I need sleep. I'll finish that post tmrw. A good night to you all! Especially me!!! :D dog knows I need it

 

[Pretty_Diamonds]

I don't think drug dealers need rehab.

If he was able to sling an oz of blow, he isn't poor either TBH.

It says that he's a drug addict though. Could be slinging to pay for his habit.

 

['medicine cabinet']

Great way for the gov to show its a good idea to incarcerate non violent drug addicts. What a dick. They should have just shipped him off to an inpatient rehab. And like there are no drugs in jail? Hes just going to become a better criminal in there, learn new ways to scam and score being mixed in gen pop with the rest of the real animal criminals. Seems like the kind of dad would just let his own son suffer thru the agony of a cold turkey wd if he was on dope. And probably locked down in a cell somewhere. Fucked up right there.

 

[slimvictor]

Either the dad was just playing politician, which is very sad, or he is deeply ignorant and deluded, which is also sad.

 

[Mihkal]

Seems to me like a coping mechanism. I would hope that he truly feels love for his son, and this strange form of denial may be a result of unresolved conflicts between his love for his son, and the negative repercussions he may have been experiencing as a result of his sons arrest.
Or he might just be soulless toupee-wearing robohuman. Hard to tell sometimes.

 

[!_MDMA_!]

prisons stopped rehabilitating ever since they discovered how much money they can make behind bars

 

[slimvictor]

Or he might just be soulless toupee-wearing robohuman.

This gets my vote, both because I like the way you put it, and because he is a politician, and they are essentially all just soulless toupee-wearing robohumans.

 

[Jabberwocky]

Either the dad was just playing politician, which is very sad, or he is deeply ignorant and deluded, which is also sad.

I'm jealous because have a hard time saying intelligent things AND saying them succinctly, like you can

prisons stopped rehabilitating ever since they discovered how much money they can make behind bars

"Rehabilitation" has always been a tricky thing. During the early history of prisons (1800-1900) some thought solitary confinement would rehabilitate prisoners by forcing them to live with their sins for a decade or so (obviously this didn't work and proved to costly). There are a lot of different well meaning perhaps in a paternalistic sense but draconian nonetheless attempts at this in other cases.

Yet, there have also been successes at creating "prisons" that actually rehabilitate inmates. But the only one I can think of existed about 100 years ago.

But yea, since the rise of the private prison and Prison Industrial Complex, you're absolutely right. Check out Angela Davis' work. Shit, they had a judge in Penn funneling juvis regardless of offense to a private juvi facility and he got kickbacks for every kid he sent. Sick shit. Sick shit.

 

[zekethemusicman]

yes because historically people always get better and quite using drugs after they go to prison. Who wants to place a bet on him joining a gang?

 

[Diloadid]

yes because historically people always get better and quite using drugs after they go to prison. Who wants to place a bet on him joining a gang?

Lol. I'd place more money on seeing his name listed as a CI inside someone's discovery packet.