The Office of National Drug Control Policy held a media briefing earlier in the month. The purpose of the briefing was to discuss the Obama Administration’s unprecedented approach to addressing drug addiction.
U.S. Criminalized Drug Stats
The Department of Justice released new data:
o Justice Department says that drug use costs U.S. $193 billion a year
o $56 billion of that $193 is directly connected to the criminal justice system
o 7 million in the U.S. are under criminal justice protection
o 2 million behind bars in U.S. over drug-related charges
States and cities are finding that budgets are being stretched to manage drug criminalization. Between 1988 and 2009, state corrections increased from $12 billion to more than $50 billion per year.
Obama Administration has pursued unprecedented measures
Ben Tucker, deputy director for State, Local, and Tribal Affairs presided over the briefing. It seems that we’re not winning any kind of war on drugs or curing a disease. We are perpetuating drug policies that target certain ethnicities.
Efforts to Bring Change
“African Americans and Hispanics are disproportionately incarcerated for drug offenses. These two groups have consistently higher proportions of inmates in state prison who are drug offenders compared to Whites – about 50 percent higher among these minorities compared to Whites,” said Tucker.
“As our nation works to recover from the greatest recession we’ve had, we must do everything we can to lessen the harm that drug offenses and drug use have on the health, safety, and economic potential of our nation and our fellow citizens.”
Gil Kerlikowske, director of National Drug Control Policy outlined unprecedented actions being pursued by the Obama Administration to break the cycle of drug use, crime, incarceration and re-arrest.
The Obama Administration’s approach to criminal justice drug policy is guided by three facts:
• Addiction is a disease that can be treated.
• People can recover from drug addiction.
• New interventions are needed to appropriately address substance abuse and drug-related crime.
“We cannot arrest our way out of our nation’s drug problem and while new strategies are being implemented there is more to do,” said Kerlikowske.
Obama Administration Actions:
• Spent $10.4 billion on drug prevention and treatment programs
• Signed the Fair Sentencing Act into law – Long overdue criminal justice reform reducing a 100-to-1 sentencing disparity between power and crack cocaine
• Implementing the Second Chance Act – Provides funding for reentry services and policies at the state and local levels
• Expansion of drug court which place non-violent drug offenders into treatment instead of prison
Obama Administration spending more on recovery programs
In 2010, the Department of Justice awarded $100 million to support 178 state and local reentry grants to provide a wide range of services. The department also awarded another $83 million to 118 new grantees in September.
Nationwide, housing authorities are being encouraged to lease to offenders returning to the community and to ensure that they understand that they have the discretion to lease to all but two specific classes of felon.
The Attorney General issued a letter to state attorneys general urging them to review and consider the legal collateral consequences of their state laws being placed upon ex-offenders that may hinder their successful reentry into society.
“I also encourage states to take our lead in support the funding of effective alternatives to incarceration. By implementing a range of innovative, yet proven public health and public safety interventions, we can save taxpayer dollars and improve outcomes and break the cycle of drug use, crime, and incarceration,” said Kerlikowske.
