NCJ Number
134317
Date Published
1990
Length
8 pages
Annotation
The Regional Drug Initiative Task Force (RDI) reviews available information pro and con drug legalization and states its position on the issue.
Abstract
The RDI opposes the legalization, the controlled legalization, and the decriminalization of illicit drugs. This position is based on health, workplace, and criminal justice issues. Although legalization would eliminate a set of crimes enforced by the criminal justice systems, it would lead to increased drug use with the elimination of the legal sanction. Drug use not only causes deleterious health effects, but also places long-term demands on health care systems and the associated financial costs. This is confirmed by data on drug affected babies, emotionally and developmentally disturbed children in drug using environments, physical effects on adults, child abuse, border babies, and Drug Abuse Warning Network. A policy of drug legalization would undermine the progress of business and industry communities in providing safe work environments and in returning drug abusing employees as productive members of the work force. The RDI has concluded that legalization of drugs would not only displace society's cost from the criminal justice system to the health care system and the workplace, but would increase drug use extensively. In addition, the expansion and improvement of drug treatment programs and their availability need to be considered as well. 4 figures and 38 footnotes