MEASURE 57 PREVAILS!

Backed by a broad coalition of law enforcement, legislators, the treatment community, advocates for children and seniors, business leaders, corrections officers and many more, Measure 57 overwhelmingly passed.

"With Measure 57, we strike the right balance of increased sentencing combined with judicial discretion and required addiction treatment. Voters clearly saw that Measure 57 will help break the cycle of crime in Oregon," said Clackamas County District Attorney John Foote.

"A lot of groups who are often at odds worked together on this. It's such a positive example of how we can come together around the same side of an issue and actually solve a problem," Foote continued.

Oregonians sent a clear message about the direction they want to see in Oregon's criminal justice system: addiction treatment for property crime offenders needs to be prioritized as part of the solution.

Many advocates from the treatment community were part of the Measure 57 coalition. Executive Director of the Oregon Prevention, Education and Recovery Association, Debra Gilmour, had this to say: "While tonight we celebrate, our work is not over. I look forward to working hand-in-hand with law enforcement to make sure that the next legislature delivers on the promised funding of addiction treatment that voters so overwhelmingly backed with Measure 57. And I look forward to working with the legislature to make alcohol and drug abuse prevention and treatment a top priority in 2009."