Drug Free Zones around schools and daycares could shrink, if some lawmakers get their way. A bill would shrink the zone from 1,500 feet to just 200 feet.
Parents and residents are taking issue with the bill.
“I can’t believe that. It’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard to just give people more of an opportunity to be like ‘oh here, drugs for the little children,” says Matt Wandell of Rocky Hill.
Joan O’Hare, a mother from West Hartford says, “it’s an extra step of protection… 200 feet is not far at all.”
The current zone is 1,500 feet. Created in the 1980's it's meant to keep drugs away from kids. Anyone caught selling or carrying drugs in the zone faces a mandatory 2 to 3 years in jail.
Lawmakers today say it doesn't account for populated urban areas. Schools are closer to houses and 1,500 feet can include the privacy of someone’s home. Still, parents aren't buying it.
“It’s against the law… they shouldn’t be doing it in their home or out of the home,” says O’Hare.
The Judiciary Committee voted on a 200 foot Drug Free Zone, effective only during organized student activities. The bill is not a law yet. It now goes to House of Representatives for another vote.
