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MALONE — A proposed law would add up to 10 years to a drug-trafficker's prison sentence if they use the St. Regis Mohawk Reservation or other Indian lands.
"We need to send an unequivocal message to drug smugglers that using Indian reservations to traffic drugs will not be tolerated and that violators will be suitably penalized," Sen. Charles Schumer (R-N.Y.) said in a news release.
The Cross-Border Reservation Drug Trafficking Sentencing Enhancement Act of 2009 would amend the Controlled Substances Import and Export Act to state that anyone found guilty of using an Indian reservation to smuggle drugs would be additionally fined and/or sent to prison for up to 10 years beyond their court sentence.
Schumer said the amended law would reduce the flow of drugs into New York and increase safety within the reservation.
Franklin County District Attorney Derek Champagne said the reservation does not have U.S. Customs and Border Protection stations and therefore the international border is vulnerable to drug smuggling.
"But this proposal treats everyone fairly," he said. "It clearly states if you take advantage of that, you should face a stiffer penalty.
"This proposal has my 110-percent support," the DA said, adding that he had worked extensively with not only Schumer's office in drafting the proposed law, but also with the staff in the office of former U.S. Representative and current Secretary of the Army John McHugh.
He said it is an example of using different approaches to battle a lingering problem.
"We need to be creative and have an energetic approach instead of waiting," Champagne said. "Obviously that hasn't worked, but hopefully this legislation can get some traction."
The proposal comes a year after the biggest drug-smuggling bust the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration had ever made here, which occurred in January.
Since then, the DEA has arrested 26 New York residents for operating a marijuana-smuggling ring that allegedly trafficked $300 million to $700 million worth of pot through the reservation during the past 10 years.
"The geographic location of reservation along the U.S.—Canadian border makes them susceptible to drug trafficking, and we must do everything we can to discourage individuals from exploiting that option," Schumer said.
There are seven unmanned roads leading on and off the reservation, making the two-square-mile territory an easy access point for smugglers.
He said the northern border is difficult to monitor since it is so long and is split locally into two countries.
Franklin County was one of three local counties along with Clinton and St. Lawrence that were designated in June as High-Intensity Drug-Trafficking Areas by the federal government, which will now fund the border/narcotics task force put in place by Champagne nearly a decade ago.
E-mail Denise A. Raymo at: draymo@pressrepublican.com
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