Prop 36 support remains split in Bay Area as debate continues over drug sentences

One of the seemingly most split measures up for vote in November is Prop 36, which would increase sentences for certain drug and theft crimes.

People against the proposition say it would lead to mass incarceration.

However, many leaders, including those in San Mateo County, believe the benefits would be big for their community.

Elizabeth Walker lives with the pain every day of losing her 17-year-old son Colin to Fentanyl-laced cocaine.

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She hopes Prop 36 would make it so no other parents will have to feel the same loss.

"My son was murdered," Walker said. "Someone put poisoning into what he should not have been taking. But, if you were an alcoholic and went into a bar, you shouldn't be ordering a drink, but do you deserve to die because someone puts poisoning in your drink? Absolutely not."

Prop 36 proponents say it will help families like the Walkers by enacting stricter penalties for drug dealers.

If it were passed when Colin died, the dealer could have faced murder charges due to his death.

The proposition is seen as reform to Prop 47, which reduced hard drug possession and theft penalties. It plans to do this by holding drug dealers and repeat retail and smash-and-grab thieves accountable.

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Leaders in San Mateo County are calling on their colleagues to support the measure.

"By voting tomorrow to endorse Prop 36, the San Mateo Board of Supervisors can send a clear message that San Mateo County's Board of Supervisors joins San Francisco's Mayor and San Jose's Mayor in providing a brighter and safer future for this region," San Mateo Co. Supervisor Ray Mueller said.

Not everyone in San Mateo County is on board with this call for support, however.

"I feel that the leadership needs to address the root cause of the problem: the cost of living in San Mateo County, as well as the state of California, rather than incarcerating people," San Mateo Co. Resident Jim Lawrence said.

"We need to address it from a medical perspective, not from a jail perspective," San Mateo Co. Resident Deacon Lauren Patton-McCombs said.

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'No on 36' advocates say this takes California back to the failures of 80s and 90s and the war on drugs.

Executive Officer of the Anti-Recidivism Coalition Sam Lewis says it will cost California billions in prison fees when people should be given more chances for reform.

"Instead, we're trying to find faster ways to lock people up and go back to mass incarceration," Lewis said. "That's not going to work for us. We're criminalizing homelessness. We're criminalizing poverty. Is that what America is about? Is that what California is about?"

This has been a contentious issue in California, with many Democratic leaders speaking against Prop 36. This includes Governor Gavin Newsom who has openly criticized supporters.

The San Mateo County Supervisors will vote on whether or not to endorse Prop 36 at their meeting Tuesday morning.

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