And this news from Albany, New York: The Governor, George Pataki, yesterday called for the easing of New York’s tough Rockefeller Drug Laws. A person found guilty of a single four-ounce sale of a controlled substance can face a minimum prison sentence of 15 years to life — the same penalty as someone convicted of second-degree murder in New York. Currently, more than 21,000 prisoners are serving time for drug-related offenses, out of New York’s 70,000 prisoners. The Governor said, “However well-intentioned, key aspects of those laws are out of step with both the times and the complexities of drug addiction.” As he gave his seventh annual State of the State address, he offered no details about how to ease the drug laws, except that he wants to do so dramatically. Outside of the State of the State address, scores of people held signs, on them the names of their sisters, brothers, mothers and fathers who remain in prison for decades for nonviolent drug offenses. Meanwhile, White House drug policy director Barry McCaffrey issued his final anti-drug report, stressing the need for President-elect George Bush to maintain the national strategy he has pursued. McCaffrey is to appear at the White House today to release the report before stepping down as head of President Clinton’s Office of National Drug Control Policy.