Upstate big apple Mayor, Fmr Police leader, Leads law enforcement officials on Chase, Throwing Crack From His car

 In a story that appears like something out of an episode of an Adult Swim cartoon, the Mayor of Massena, NY, and therefore the town’s former police officer was arrested this month after speeding far away from police while throwing crack cocaine out of the window of his car.

Timmy J. Currier, the previous officer and current mayor of the village of Massena has announced a league of absence this month after a video showed him getting arrested at gunpoint after leading police on a high-speed chase.

Before becoming mayor of Massena, Currier was the city’s top cop. He was the Massena police captain for over twenty years — which is probably going where he developed his affinity for crack.

According to police, during the chase, this former chief of police and also the current mayor began throwing crack out of the window to avoid getting caught with it.

The incident began as a part of an undercover sting during which Currier was a suspect. Officials with the St. Lawrence County Sheriff’s Office said detectives and special agents from an operation in association with the U.S. Dept. of independent agency attempted to drag Currier’s vehicle over on suspicion of drug sales and possession on Saturday, Dec. 1, at 12:25 p.m.

However, Currier failed to stop when police initiated the stop and instead led them on a chase. Detectives said they witnessed Currier throw the crack from his passenger’s side window as he was the sole occupant of the vehicle.

When police finally wedged to Currier, the mayor was held at gunpoint and pulled from the car, before being handcuffed and dropped at the jail. in step with Syracuse.com, Currier was charged with seventh-degree possession of a drug, a misdemeanor, and released to look at a later date.

Apparently, his 20 years because the police captain and his current position because the mayor has granted him a bit privilege among the enforcement class and he was simply allowed to run right out of the jail, posting no bail, and facing no other charges despite running from cops.

After his arrest, Currier issued a public apology, essentially admitting to the crimes:

“Some time ago, I made some poor decisions that unfortunately led me down a path leading to my arrest on Tuesday, December 1st. I cannot express how embarrassed and disappointed in myself and for my family and friends.

I want to apologize to my family and friends who still show me, unconditional love, during these difficult times.

Please remember that the Village of Massena employees and staff do incredible work for this community each and each day. My poor decisions mustn't reflect negatively upon them in any way.

I have spent 32 years of public service working for the citizens of Massena and therefore the North Country. I've got always appreciated their trust and support. I hope and pray that I will be able to have a chance to regain that trust.

This morning I informed Deputy Mayor Matt LeBire and Village Administrator Monique Chatland that I will be able to be taking a leave of absence from my position as Village of Massena Mayor, so I can seek professional treatment. Deputy Mayor LeBire will function as acting Mayor in my absence.

I ask that you simply respect my family’s privacy during this difficult time.”

Had Currier not been the mayor and also the former officer, rest assured that he would likely still be in jail right away. Indeed, many will argue — and rightfully so — that Currier should face harsher punishment thanks to the betrayal of his trust within the community. However, had Currier not made a living off of kidnapping and caging people for these exact same acts, he shouldn’t be “punished” the least bit for them—no one should.

Criminalizing addiction and drug abuse have done nothing to curb use. People are actually dying within the streets at an increasing rate and no amount of shogunate can stop it. In fact, since the inception of the warfare, white plague and overdoses have gotten worse. Why is that?

Last year, as reported on an analogous incident within which a cop — whose job consisted of locking people in cages for illegal substances — overdosed while on duty. Luckily for Franklin Township officer Matthew D. Ellery, 29, he was found early enough to avoid wasting his life and therefore the officer who passed through his overdose was an EMT.

As we reported, just like the mayor, Ellery failed to head to jail for betraying the people he served, instead, he received drug treatment and probation.

Unlike Ellery and also the mayor, the thousands of individuals who get caught with similar substances each year don't get their treatment and find themselves locked in an exceeding cage. Clearly, this is often not working.

Research — in line with many enforcement officials — shows that the value of incarceration, especially for repeat drug offenders, is much more than simply treating their addiction. it's also much better for a society that values freedom.

The good news is that some enforcement across the country is realizing that treatment — not cages — curbs the matter of addiction way more successfully.

Currier’s arrest has to function as a serious warning call to enforcement and therefore the remainder of the country who continues to blindly support the war on drugs. Your support for kidnapping and caging drug users is causing unnecessary suffering and even mass death. And, it's led to 1 of the biggest drug epidemics the planet has ever seen. When the state’s war on drugs can’t even prevent its own enforcers just like the mayor and former police captain from driving down the road throwing crack from the window, it’s time we rethink where this is often going. End the warfare now.