Pubdate: Sat, 16 Feb 2002
Source: Washington Times (DC)
Copyright: 2002 News World Communications, Inc.
Contact:  http://www.washtimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/492
Author: August Gribbin
Related: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n268/a01.html

NATION TAKES DRUG ABUSE SERIOUSLY

The nation is uniformly upset about drug abuse and its consequences, but 
divided about what to do with drug pushers and users, a first-of-its-kind 
study says.

Although states constitute the front lines in the war on drugs, the study 
shows their laws differ wildly, as does the seriousness with which they 
regard drug dealing and substance abuse.

The report by a prominent team of substance-abuse specialists also points 
out that, contrary to common belief, states commonly ignore federal 
anti-drug approaches for dealing with such substances as cocaine, 
methamphetamine and the hugely popular "club drugs" such as Ecstasy.

"The report is the only comprehensive, standardized assessment of laws 
across the nation," said Dr. J. Michael McGinnis, a senior vice president 
at the Johnson Foundation.

He said it is significant "because it provides a tool that will help in 
determining for the first time what works and what fails in dealing with 
substance abuse."

The 140-page report is titled "Illicit Drug Policies: Selected Laws From 
the 50 States." It was produced by a team of economists, psychologists, 
sociologists, lawyers, epidemiologists and others as part of a continuing 
anti-drug program funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and run by 
the University of Ilinois at Chicago.

The document explains that each state establishes a "schedule," meaning a 
comparative evaluation of the various drugs' perceived danger and medical 
value. Each state also has statutes that set penalties for the sale and 
possession of banned substances. And importantly, state officials prosecute 
the vast majority of drug-related crimes.

The study points out that: "The maximum statutory penalty for the sale of a 
standard retail amount of cocaine, methamphetamine, or Ecstasy ranges from 
one year of imprisonment to life in prison."

For instance, a drug offender hauled before a North Carolina court and 
charged with selling 1 gram of cocaine would face a maximum sentence of a 
year in prison. The same offender on trial for the same offense in Montana 
could be fined $50,000 and jailed for life.

In Minnesota, a person caught holding 10 grams of methamphetamine would be 
looking at the possibility of a $500,000 fine and a 25-year prison 
sentence. The same person standing before a Virginia court for the 
identical offense could expect a maximum sentence of $1,000 and six months 
in the lockup.

Federal law declares marijuana is an illicit substance and makes no 
exception for its use as a medicine. However, 24 states and the District 
have enacted a provision that skirts the ban, and some states have enacted 
more than one exception to the law.

Fourteen states permit Therapeutic Research Programs, in effect allowing 
patients enrolled in a research program to use the drug. Three states make 
marijana a legal medication, 11 allow doctors to prescribe the drug and 
seven allow patients accused of abusing the drug to plead medical necessity.

In recent years the drug called Ecstasy or "E" has grown immensely in 
popularity despite increasingly dire medical warnings of its dangerous 
effects. It is commonly used by youngsters at "raves," or all-night dances, 
and even by grade-school children.

However, drug-study researchers revealed yesterday at a news conference 
that 11 states have not banned the substance, which is said to have no 
medical uses and which has been banned by the federal government. Among 
states that do ban the drug, penalties for possession of a single pill 
range from $5,000 to $1 million and anywhere from a year to life in jail, 
said Rosalie Pacula, a Rand researcher and co-author of the study.

Additionally, federal law makes a giant distinction between cocaine powder, 
which is typically sniffed or snorted and more dangerous crack, the street 
name given to cocaine that has been specially processed for smoking. Only 
11 states have created separate penalties for possessing or selling crack 
and cocaine powder.

Such differences matter for many reasons, said Miss Pacula, and not least 
is that they show "offenders processed for similar crimes in different 
state courts are subject to different standards."
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