War on Drugs

Paper Summary:

In this article, the writer notes that the past history of the war on drugs is centered on the arrests made against non-violent criminals who were found guilt of carrying, using, and dealing many different types of drugs. In many cases, non-violent drug offenders were often placed into prisons or jails with violent offenders. The writer points out that this was often the case with the war on drugs, as the charges brought against these offenders would often bring about stiff sentences that made them eligible to be placed alongside violent criminals in prison populations. The writer then looks at changes in legislation regarding the use of drugs. The writer also discusses how the legalization of marijuana could be helpful in solving the high prison populations and growing violence associated with drug offenses. The writer concludes that the criminal justice system must begin to realize the inefficacy of inappropriate prison sentencing and brutal reactionary police force that is currently doing very little to help fight the war on drugs.

Outline:
A Past History: High Arrest Rates and Violent Crime for the War on Drugs
Present Issues in the Criminal Justice System and the Affects of the Drug War on Prison Populations
Legalization: Future Implications for the War on Drugs

From the Paper:

"Since President Nixon officially declared war on the drug markets in America, these legislative actions have led to the arrest of many thousands of drug offenders nationwide. Ronald Reagan played a large part in organizing funding for police and for the prisons that would incarcerate drug offenders after arrests were made. The 1970s and the 1980s saw a steady growth of law enforcement directives that sought to arrest and take off the streets drugs that were said to be causing urban decay and increasing violence in local communities. The criminal justice system was given the edict of minimum sentences for drug abusers and dealers, since the law dictated an unlimited amount of prison time for persons carrying even the smallest amount of drugs in their position."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Bertram, E. 1996. Drug war politics: The price of denial. Los Angeles: University of California Press.
• Eggen, D. (2005). "Marijuana becomes focus of Drug War." Washingtonpost.com. Retrieved 30 October, 2006 from http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/05/03/AR2005050301638.html
• "Interdiction and incarceration still top remedies: 74% Say Drug War being lost" (2001). Pew Research Center. Retrieved 30 October, 2006 from http://people-press.org/reports/display.php3?ReportID=16
• Marez, C. (2004). Drug wars: The political economy of narcotics. Minnesota: University of Minnesota Press.
• Marijuana as Medicine." (2003). Marijuana Legalization Organization. Retrieved 30 October, 2006 from http://www.mjlegal.org/medicinal.html

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