Excepted substances: a comparison of Federal and state laws.

A state law has placed an obligation on the criminal investigation laboratories to screen and quantitate all preparations, both pharmaceutical and illicit, that fall under the provisions of "Excepted Substances." Without complete screens on these preparations, there is room for erroneous indictments as well as possible acquittals on technicalities.     

Institutionalized Evaluation and Intergovernmental Relations: The Case of Coastal Zone Management

The enactment of national environmental management programswas prompted, in large part, by the perceived failure of stateand local government officials to deal adequately with pollutioncontrol and resource management problems. Paradoxically, theimplementation of several important environmental managementprograms relies heavily on these same state and local officials.Congress has sought to resolve this paradox by requiring federalevaluation of state and local environmental planning and managementactivities. Many of these evaluations are little more than routinefiscal audits. However one agency, the Office of Coastal ZoneManagement, has sought to develop a systematic evaluation processfocusing on all aspects of state coastal zone programs. Theseevaluative efforts have led to intergovernmental tensions, mostnotably with regard to the purposes and methods of evaluation,the appropriate roles of federal and state officials, and theresources available for evaluation. In spite of these tensions,there is broad agreement about the value of the evaluation processand its potential applicability in other contexts.     

On the legality of cannabis; the responsibility of the expert witness.

The controversy concerning the taxonomic status of the genus Cannabis has now advanced to a stage where the forensic scientist has limitations to his testimony in identification of "marihuana" plant material in jurisdictions where the law defines "marihuana" as Cannabis sativa L. Whether the genus Cannabis is monotypic or polytypic is as yet uncertain, but recent taxonomic reviews weigh heavily toward the existence of three or more species within the genus. The taxonomists or forensic scientists cannot, therefore, positively state for fact that C. sativa is the only species existing within the genus Cannabis. The popular concept of "marihuana" is actually based on the chemical characteristics of the plant Cannabis, rather than on the taxonomic classification. This is evident in its inclusion as a drug or hallucinogenic substance under Federal and local statutes. It is therefore proposed that "marihuana" be redefined legally to include all members belonging to the genus, in jurisdictions where legal definition warrants such an act, or that these jurisdictions follow the format set forth by Federal rulings.     

Crime-minimizing drug policy

Objective

To identify changes in drug abuse control measures that would reduce non-drug crime.

Method

Policy analysis.

Results

Expanding current anti-drug efforts in the conventional triad of enforcement, prevention, and treatment (including drug courts) holds out little hope of reducing non-drug crime. Routine drug law enforcement risks increasing crime by raising drug prices and creating incentives for violence among dealers. Low-arrest crackdowns to break up flagrant markets promise better results.Even good prevention programs have modest effect sizes, and most prevention programs are not based on proven models.The overlap between the population of heavy illicit drug users and the population of frequent non-drug offenders presents a problem and a policy opportunity that current programs largely fail to grasp.Drug treatment, except for opiate substitution, has difficulty recruiting and retaining clients, and weak sanctions systems render treatment mandates largely nominal. Abstinence-mandate programs such as HOPE and Sobriety 24/7 have shown superior results in reducing re-offending and incarceration.Raising alcohol taxes reduces heavy alcohol use and crime due to intoxication without generating any offsetting criminogenic effects.

Conclusion

Current drug policies are not optimally designed for the control of non-drug crime. Improvements are within relatively easy reach.