War on Drugs...Legislation - 1 Slide Per Page.pdf

The War on Drugs Legislation  1906: Pure Food and Drug Act Prohibited interstate commerce in adulterated or misbranded food and drugs. That for purposes of this Act an article shall also be deemed misbranded:... if the package fails to bear a statement on the label of...

The War on Drugs Legislation  1906: Pure Food and Drug Act Prohibited interstate commerce in adulterated or misbranded food and drugs. That for purposes of this Act an article shall also be deemed misbranded:... if the package fails to bear a statement on the label of the quantity or proportion of any alcohol, morphine, opium, cocaine, heroin, alpha or beta eucaine, chloroform, cannabis, chloral hydrate, or acetanilide. 1909: Opium Exclusion Act Opiates were first drug group to be controlled. The Opium Exclusion Act applied only to the opium processed for smoking that was favored by Chinese immigrants —not the medicinal opium that white Americans commonly kept in their household medicine cabinets. 1914: Harrison Narcotic Act First major national anti-narcotic law. Passed to gain favor with the Chinese. Imposed a special tax upon all persons who produced, imported, manufactured, dealt in, dispensed or gave away opium products or coca leaves, or any of their preparations or derivatives.  Dealers/dispensers of said drugs had to register, pay a tax, and use special forms. Originally, the Act allowed physicians to prescribe "in the course of his professional practice only, “but this was quickly reinterpreted to stricter guidelines. The act marks the beginning of the creation of the modern, criminal drug addict and the American black market for drugs.  1919: Volstead Act The three distinct purposes of the Act were: to prohibit intoxicating beverages, to regulate the manufacture, sale, or transport of intoxicating liquor (but not consumption), and to ensure an ample supply of alcohol and promote its use in scientific research and in the development of fuel, dye and other lawful industries and practices, such as religious rituals.  1919: Volstead Act It provided further that "no person shall manufacture, sell, barter, transport, import, export, deliver, or furnish any intoxicating liquor except as authorized by this act." It did not specifically prohibit the use of intoxicating liquors. The act defined intoxicating liquor as any beverage containing more than 0.5% alcohol by volume and superseded all existing prohibition laws in effect in states that had such legislation. 1937: Marihuana (sic) Tax Act Targeted mainly Mexican immigrants in the West and Southwest. Spearheaded by Harry Anslinger who was the Commissioner of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics from 1930 to 1962. Not an outright law against marijuana, but required a “tax stamp” in order to transfer the product between seller and buyer.  1970: Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act Consolidated all previous laws regulating the manufacture and distribution of opiates, stimulants, depressants, hallucinogens, anabolic steroids, and any other chemical considered to have a potential for abuse. Shifted drug regulation from a tax and commerce issue to a law enforcement issue. Created the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA).  Drug Scheduling Schedule 1 Very high abuse potential; no accepted medical use Schedule 2 Very high abuse potential; also an accepted medical use Schedule 3 High abuse potential; also an accepted medical use Drug Scheduling Schedule 4 Moderate abuse potential; accepted medical use Schedule 5 Low but significant abuse potential; accepted medical use  1986: Anti Drug Abuse Act In 1984, the Federal Sentencing Reform Act reintroduced mandatory minimum sentencing laws 2 years later, the Anti Drug Abuse Act provided mandatory minimum sentencing specifically for the possession of cocaine (minimum of 5 years) as well as sentences without the possibility of parole. Consequently, the number of people in prison for drugs has dramatically increased since the 1980s.  2010: Fair Sentencing Act Reduced the disparity between the amount of crack cocaine and powder cocaine needed to trigger certain federal criminal penalties from a 100:1 weight ratio to an 18:1 weight ratio and eliminated the five-year mandatory minimum sentence for simple possession of crack cocaine, among other provisions