Mike DeWine on Drugs

	Mike DeWine on Drugs Former Republican Sr Senator (OH, 1995-2007)

Restrict public use of marijuana permitted under new law

Then there's marijuana. I doubt if very many people who voted "yes" on Issue 2 wanted their kids breathing in marijuana smoke while walking in a public park or on a sidewalk to ball practice or smelling the stench of it walking from the parking lot to a Guardians or Reds game. That is not what people voted for, but it is what the current law allows. We owe it to our families to change that, and you, Members of the General Assembly, have the power to do that. I ask you to exercise that power. Source: 2024 State of the State Address to the Ohio legislature , Apr 10, 2024

Focus on children of drug abusers; and help parents

We are going to educate children on the dangers of drug, alcohol, and tobacco use and teach them the skills on how to make healthy decisions throughout their lives. We are going to expand wrap-around service models, such as our Ohio Sobriety, Treatment, Abuse, and Reducing Trauma program, known as OhioSTART. It provides specialized victim services to children who have been abused or neglected because of parental drug use, and it provides drug treatment for those parents. Source: 2019 State of the State address to the Ohio legislature , Mar 5, 2019

Opposes recreational marijuana; opposes Ballot issue 1

Q: Legalize or decriminalize marijuana? Support Ohio Ballot Issue 1, which reduces first & second arrests for simple drug possession to non-jail time misdemeanors? Related, how to best address opioid crisis?

Richard Cordray (D): Would legalize. Supports Issue 1 as alternative to failed drug & incarceration policies. "Can't arrest way out of opioid crisis," so fund treatment & prevention programs, train law enforcement, & boost state support for families.

Mike DeWine (R): Opposes recreational marijuana legalization or decriminalization. Sued Toledo when the city passed municipal decriminalization. Also opposes Issue 1. To help address opioid crisis, expand substance-abuse & early intervention programs, and add drug courts.

Source: 2018 CampusElect.org Issue Guide on Ohio Governor race , Oct 9, 2018

Keep low-level drug use a felony instead of a misdemeanor

Gov. John Kasich said he is leaning toward supporting a ballot issue to prevent many low-level drug use and possession offenders from being sent to state prisons. Kasich signaled his potential support for Issue 1 on the Nov. 6 ballot, a constitutional amendment that would convert low-level drug use and possession felonies to first-degree misdemeanors that would divert offenders out of prison to addiction treatment. It also could lead to the release of those now imprisoned in state facilities for minor drug offenses.

"It's important for low-level offenders to not be in the prison system," the second-term Republican governor said, adding he wants to study the issue further. It is opposed by Attorney General Mike DeWine, the Republican candidate for governor, and supported by his opponent, Democrat Richard Cordray.

Source: The Columbus Dispatch on 2018 Ohio gubernatorial race , Aug 1, 2018

Age-appropriate discussions in Kindergarten thru 12th grade

Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine outlined proposals to restrict opioid abuse statewide. DeWine spoke with area law enforcement officials during a meeting of the Metro Toledo Criminal Justice Administrators in Oregon. He reiterated his support for their agencies and encouraged ideas for curtailing heroin use.

Accidental overdoses killed an average of eight people each day last year in Ohio. That total appears to still be climbing, he said. "I don't know that we've hit the bottom yet," he said.

It is encouraging, he added, that many now acknowledge this problem and are working toward a solution. DeWine suggested expanding the school curriculum for kindergarten through 12th grade with age-appropriate discussions on drugs. Reaching so many youth from an early stage is common sense, he said.

Source: Toledo Blade on 2018 Ohio gubernatorial race , Jan 28, 2017