NCJ Number
193480
Date Published
2000
Length
8 pages
Annotation
This chapter demonstrates the importance of location to drug trafficking, sale, and distribution in the United States.
Abstract
Drug abuse in this country is considered to be a major problem in society. There is a link between drug use and criminal behavior. The spatial dimension of trafficking clarifies the origins and diffusion patterns that change over time depending on such factors as methods of transport, development of new drugs to meet consumer demands, and enforcement strategies. Drugs now listed as illegal were viewed at one time as solutions for an improved life. The use and abuse of certain drugs have a cyclical pattern. Public and governmental attitudes towards their use vary over the course of history. Drug policy in the first half of the 20th century generated a series of anti-drug laws. The second half was marked by increased criminalization of drug use and intervention in the international trafficking of illegal drugs. Crops used in drug production have been a part of everyday life in cultures around the world for centuries. Smuggling transportation methods primarily range from concealment in maritime cargo vessels or small boats that blend into the local landscape, to aircraft, cars, and trucks. Location is a major element in the success of smuggling. Most of the cocaine used in the United States is supplied from Colombia. The coastal configuration along the Gulf of Mexico provides secluded entries into the southern region. The demand for heroin has increased steadily over the last decade. The largest producers are Burma and Laos in Southeast Asia and Afghanistan in Southwest Asia. Marijuana is supplied from Colombia and Mexico and is also domestically grown. Public perception is that the sale and distribution of illegal drugs are solely the work of large, organized cartels but opportunities also exist for smaller entrepreneurs. The four types of drug markets are neighborhood, open regional, semi-open regional, and closed regional. The expansiveness of this social problem provides an understanding of the difficulties involved in the control of international drug trafficking. 4 figures, 18 references