NCJ Number
154573
Journal
Nation Dated: (June 29, 1992) Pages: 886-888
Date Published
1992
Length
3 pages
Annotation
Although the war on drugs is popular, it is ineffective and is taking away our civil liberties.
Abstract
More citizens are in Federal prison today for drug law offenses than were in Federal prison for all crimes when Ronald Reagan took office. A higher proportion of United States citizens are in prison than in any other country. President Bush's latest national Drug Control Strategy calls for casual users to be imprisoned as criminals, ejected from public housing, deprived of driver's licenses, and cut off from both student loans and welfare. However, criminalizing victimless drug use separates behavior from the societal harm it may cause. Meanwhile, the drug problem and the violence associated with it show no real sign of diminishing. The war on drugs has also let the government concentrate unprecedented police power at the Federal level. The Federal Government has cut general assistance to local police while offering large grants for drug law enforcement. Drug cases continue to flood the Federal courts, and penalties continue to escalate due to mandatory minimum sentences and lack of Federal parole. The Federal Government can further hamper defense efforts by confiscating in advance any money the accused would use to pay a lawyer. In addition, the Supreme Court is steadily eroding the protection against police excess promised by the Constitution. Using the media to oppose drug policy is risky, as one individual discovered.