For a short period of time the Mexican government was able to combat the relocation of heroin trafficking within their country. However, during the 1950’s and 1960’s Mexico finally became the primary source for heroin bound for the United States (according to the President’s Commission on Organized Crime, 1986). It is estimated that approximately 10 tons of heroin were processed in Mexico during the 1970’s at which time 6.5 tons were illegally smuggled into the United States. On the other hand, during this same time period, Mexico was responsible for supplying over 80 percent of marijuana available for distribution throughout the United
Running Head: ANTI-DRUG LEGISLATION ANALYSIS Anti-drug Legislation Analysis Shanna Wilkins University of Phoenix August 1, 2011 CJA/354 Facilitator: Paul Croushore The war on drugs is intended to stop the distribution, trade, consumption, and production of drugs. The war on drugs is why the American prison population has escalated. Because drug crimes have escalated the prison population has tripled since the early 1980s. Homicide, robbery, and assault are no longer the number one reasons for incapacitation; this is the reason prisons are so overcrowded (Foster, 2006). In this paper the student was asked to analyze federal and state anti-drug legislation.
Determinate sentences involve sentences that have a fixed or flat time (Jirard, 2009). Determinate sentences play a large part in the increasing number of individuals in prison, which, as you can imagine, puts more strain on prisons financially. In the past two decades, we have become increasingly “tough on crime” which has helped to decrease crime to a certain extent. According to an article in the New York Times (2008), the US has fewer than five percent of the entire world’s population, but almost twenty five percent of the world’s prisoners (Liptak & , 2008). The author of the article goes on to say that people in the US are sentenced to do time for crimes that would not produce such a sentence in other countries.
Housing approximately 500,000 people in jail awaiting trial who cannot bail costs $9 billion a year. Most jail inmates are petty, nonviolent offenders. Twenty years ago most non-violent defendants were released on their own recognizance (trusted to show up at trial). Now most are given bail, and most pay a bail bondsman to afford it. 62% of local jail inmates are awaiting trial.
Even DOSA (Drug Offender Sentencing Act) which says they get half time upon completion of drug counseling, most inmates are unable to complete. However, due to budget cut this leaves inmates or the state to pay for the costs which cost even more than doing it inside the institution. Recidivism, which means to recommit crime, is over 90 percent for drugs offenders even with treatment. Without treatment or education offenders are committing more crime and most of the inmates are going back to prisons. If there are more good programs that would work for these inmate and guide them throughout, each individual should have the responsibility to complete the program and earn something from it.
I do believe we should not coddle them with taxpayer treatment programs that a lot of them enter and exit repeatedly. But, on the other hand, if those treatment centers do offer some sort of success, then it a good thing to offer them in hopes of the offenders not depending on drugs and having to commit crimes to get those drugs thus reducing crime, the courts, jails, and prison population. Drug treatment programs are less expensive than prisons and more effective at helping people turn their lives around. Many of the programs available to inmates are provided by organizations like AA and NA, which send volunteers into the prisons. Most of the volunteers are previous offenders who have changed their lives and now want to help other change their life.
This model is based on the recognition not all offenders are the same, and only a few deserve the most intensive and expensive sanction -- prison -- and almost all offenders sent to prison eventually return to their communities. There are well documented societal issues that impact the prison population and crime rate. These factors include poverty, a lack of education or employment opportunities, drug or alcohol use and abuse, racial disparity, exposure to others involved in criminal activity, and mental
This problem exists because there are not enough programs to help inmates be reformed and the little programs that are available they are implemented only after the inmate is released and not in the prison itself. This problem has been around since prisons were created and is a growing problem today. This problem needs to be addressed before it gets way out of control. There was a study offered by the Pew
Legal Drugs, Deadly Consequences As law-enforcement officials spend $15 billion a year combating the use and trafficking of cocaine, heroin, marijuana and other illegal narcotics, a more urgent crisis is emanating from the nation's pharmacies. According to a report from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), overdoses from prescription drug medication have tripled in the past decade. Deaths from prescription painkillers- a class of drugs that includes hydrocodone, methadone, oxycodone and oxymorphone- have reached epidemic levels. These drugs are widely misused and abused. Every year, nearly 15,000 people die from overdoses involving these drugs.
March 5th, 2012 Drug Trafficking in the United States The United States of America has been at war against drug trafficking since the early 1920’s. The drug cartel has tried different methods of moving drugs and money between Mexico and the United States. Americans have two major problems in the United States. The first being controlling how, when and where drugs enter our border and the second being assisting the Mexican government in keeping an eye on the drug cartel. Drug use by high school students has declined in the last few years due to: Increased security checks on our border, education materials taught in the classroom, drug tests and increased monitoring of known drug traffickers.