Blackwell Reference Online

Extract

At the broadest level, law can be defined as a written policy designed to control human behavior. Drug laws, then, are written policies designed to control drug-using behaviors. The aggressive response to drug-using behaviors, however, is a relatively modern phenomenon in the United States. A series of early American drug laws precipitated current efforts to control drug-related behaviors. These laws included the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906, the Harrison Narcotics Tax Act of 1914, and the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937. In fact, between the early 1900s and 1969, hundreds of federal drug laws were passed in the United States. Perhaps the most influential piece of drug legislation framing the current response to drug-using behaviors, the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970 repealed all prior federal drug laws and placed all drug laws under this broad, encompassing law ( Payne & Gainey 2005 ). One of the significant aspects of this law was that it created a mechanism by which drugs could be categorized into various “schedules” based on the drug's medical utility and harm. Schedule I drugs (e.g., heroin, methaqualone, LSD, marijuana, and hashish) are considered to have no medical use and a high potential for abuse. Schedule II drugs (demerol, methadone, cocaine, PCP, and morphine) are those that do have currently accepted medical uses but also have high potential ... log in or subscribe to read full text