What needs to change about how Cook County handles drug arrests?

Tablets believed to be laced with fentanyl are displayed at a Drug Enforcement Administration lab in New York in 2019. The Biden administration is hoping to crack down on abuse of synthetic opioids in part by putting them in the most restricted category or “schedule” under the law.
Tablets believed to be laced with fentanyl are displayed at a Drug Enforcement Administration lab in New York in 2019. The Biden administration is hoping to crack down on abuse of synthetic opioids in part by putting them in the most restricted category or "schedule" under the law. AFP via Getty Images
Tablets believed to be laced with fentanyl are displayed at a Drug Enforcement Administration lab in New York in 2019. The Biden administration is hoping to crack down on abuse of synthetic opioids in part by putting them in the most restricted category or “schedule” under the law.
Tablets believed to be laced with fentanyl are displayed at a Drug Enforcement Administration lab in New York in 2019. The Biden administration is hoping to crack down on abuse of synthetic opioids in part by putting them in the most restricted category or "schedule" under the law. AFP via Getty Images

What needs to change about how Cook County handles drug arrests?

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An investigation by the Chicago Sun-Times and Better Government Association found tens of thousands of people jailed on low-level drug possession cases had their charges routinely dropped in Cook County, but the consequences are still costly.

Reset turns to two local drug policy experts for their analysis and workable solutions for dealing with drug arrests in Illinois.

GUESTS: Ben Ruddell, director of Criminal Justice Policy at the ACLU of Illinois

Kathie Kane-Willis, research and policy director of Chicago Urban League