NCJ Number
84354
Journal
Social Problems Volume: 29 Issue: 4 Dated: (April 1982) Pages: 380-386
Date Published
1982
Length
7 pages
Annotation
Heavy Nevada penalties for marijuana use illustrate the symbolic properties of prohibition laws, which satisfy the need to declare moral standards without a corresponding enforcement effort. The law-and-order stance in this area also serves to deflect external controls from interfering with the State's gambling industry and other lucrative pursuits.
Abstract
To explore this discrepancy, interviews were conducted in 1978 in Reno, Las Vegas, and Carson City with past and present members of the Nevada Assembly and Senate; civil servants; police officials; judges; prosecutors; defense attorneys; and news writers. The legislative record was studied and newspapers wee reviewed for articles on alcohol, drugs, divorce, marriage, prostitution, gambling and the Nevada economy. The news reviews were done for periods immediately preceding major legislative events: 1931 -legalized gambling and shortened waiting period for divorce; 1968 -- failed statewide lottery proposal; 1971 -- prostitution prohibited only in Las Vegas; 1967 to 1971 -- reduced penalties for first offense marijuana possession in other States. The investigation revealed that, in Nevada, marijuana and other drug use is continually, but incorrectly, blamed on tourists, and high penalties are thought necessary to control these outsiders. While it is recognized that the high penalties are seldom enforced, respondents said that their existence give the State a more respectable image. Across all types of issues including prostitution, prohibition, divorces, lotteries, casino gambling, and drug use, economic considerations rather than morality have played the central role. A reference list contains 52 items.