Wisconsin Green Party Says Limbaugh Shouldn't Be Jailed Rush Limbaugh is being investigated for the illegal purchase of thousands of prescription pain killers. The Wisconsin Green Party states that if he is found guilty, and if his illegal activities are found to be victimless, then he should not go to jail. "Imprisonment is expensive, and the end result is someone who may well be in worse shape than when he/she entered the prison system," said Jeff Peterson, former WiGP candidate for Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin. "Money would be much more effectively spent on healing treatment than punishment. Many of our nation’s states are in serious financial difficulties. It would make sense to spend our dollars more sensibly – on treatment instead of prison time. " Of the $5 billion spent annually to keep those convicted of drug crimes in prison, 75% of those in prison are nonviolent offenders. Studies have found that treatment programs are more effective and cheaper than prison. According to the Sourcebook of Criminal Justice Statistics, Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice, in the last 20 years, spending on incarceration rose 571.4%, and the number of people in prisons and jail rose more than 400%. Meanwhile, the vast majority of educational and rehabilitation/recovery programs for prisoners have been slashed or eliminated. "There is a double standard in the enforcement of the drug laws across the nation," said George Martin, co-spokesperson of the WiGP. "Drug-addicted actors and athletes and white-collar employees with good health insurance are sentenced to drug treatment after conviction, while African-Americans, other minority folks, and poorer Americans are sentenced to prison, with sentences that are extremely lengthy in relation to the severity of their crime. Jeb Bush’s daughter, Noelle, was arrested in 2002 for several occasions of illegal drug abuse. She received compassion and help from a treatment center, as she should have. So should all who need it." Illegal drug use among white men is approximately the same as that among black men, yet black men are five times as likely to be arrested for drug use. In our current system, it is not uncommon for nonviolent drug offenders to be sentenced to terms longer than those imposed on rapists and other violent criminals. "Severe sentences for small nonviolent drug offenses is not only ineffective, but there are economic and emotional repercussions for the families and communities of nonviolent drug offenders," said Jessica Thill, Co-spokesperson for the WiGP. "A mother or father with young children can find her/himself arrested for possessing a very small amount of marijuana, and end up in jail for years. Instead of earning wages to support her/his offspring and raising them, the children are in foster care - supported with taxpayers’ money. This is neither effective nor cost-effective."