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The Negative Effects Of Decriminalizing Drugs

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Drug abuse is a major problem throughout the world. Drugs can influence the everyday lives of people, whether they be users, dealers, drug-related crime victims, or the friends and family of a person affected. Violent crime, prostitution, government corruption, and more can all have a link to narcotics. Much of the world, including the United States, try to stop these effects of illicit drugs by focusing on stricter laws and enforcement. Yet this this approach may be counterproductive. Although some people think the “tough on crime” approach is the best way to deal with drug problems, the truth is decriminalizing drugs is the best approach. With decriminalization, the negative effects of current drug policy can be lessened. Drug policy has …show more content…

Looking at statistics from national and governmental drug agencies will assist with the efforts of viewing current drug policy. Preliminary research has led to the realization that there is still no agreed upon conclusion to the statistics brought forth by the Portugal study. With deaths from overdose dropping in Portugal from 80 in 2001 to 20 in 2012, some decriminalization proponents, like Glenn Greenwald (2009), interpret the case as having a sizeable change on health and economics surrounding drugs; others, like Hannah Luqueur, say that the decriminalization did not trigger any dramatic changes (Laqueur, 2014, p. 746). Either way, billions of people’s tax dollars are spent on a policy that produces lackluster results while the more desireable decriminalization model sits on the sidelines. References Greenwald, G. (2009). Drug Decriminalization in Portugal: Lessons for Creating Fair and Successful Drug Policies. SSRN Electronic Journal. doi:10.2139/ssrn.1464837 Jenner, M. S. (2011). International Drug Trafficking: A Global Problem with a Domestic Solution. Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies,18(2), 901-927. doi:10.2979/indjglolegstu.18.2.901 Laqueur, H. (2014). Uses and Abuses of Drug Decriminalization in Portugal. Law & Social Inquiry,40(3), 746-781. doi:10.1111/lsi.12104 Sher, G. (2003). On the decriminalization of drugs. Criminal Justice Ethics,22(1), 30-33. doi:10.1080/0731129x.2003.9992138

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