CRIM 1650 Lecture Notes - Lecture 6: Fair Sentencing Act, Neoconservatism, Drug Policy
2 May 2018
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Politics ad Criial Justice Policy: The War o Drugs January 31, 2017
1. Ronald Regan, neo-coservatis, ad the coteporary War o Drugs
- 1981-1989: death of college basketball star and other stars due to cocaine overdose
- Evidence that it was spreading beyond cities to suburbs – Crack
o Associated with racialized groups
o Reduce the size and scale of stake
o USA lost their competitive advantage
- Ideological change
o Crime, drug use, increasingly viewed on individualized terms
o Reframed as moral limitation
- Scapegoat for variety of social problems at this time
- Not a lot of evidence to support the goveret’s case of drug use
- Casual users of drugs were the targets rather than heavy users
- 1971 – drugs are a public enemy: Bush Sr.
2. Principles and Tactics
a. Reduce Supply
o Irradiation:
o Interception and seizure
o Domestic enforcement: increase in funding for anti-drug units
o Implementation of increasingly punitive sentencing – mandatory minimums
b. Eliminate Demand
o Advertising for drug free America
o No recreational using
3. Effectiveness
- Criteria for war on drugs to be a failure
o Availability of drugs decrease
▪ Went up
o Price of drugs – constraints to purchase
▪ Price went down
o Decrease in drug purity
▪ Became more pure
o Decline in rates of drug use
▪ Use did not decrease
- War on drugs was therefore a failure
4. Effects
- Created negative side-effects
o Increase in HIV and transmission of other diseases
o Family breakdown
o High rates of incarceration
o Funding for terrorism
find more resources at oneclass.com
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o Cost:
▪ Has been extremely expensive has been initiated by the US
▪ Over 40 agencies were programed to play the role and provided
resources to wage the war on drugs
o Explosion of the prison population
▪ 1980-1985 incarceration tripled
▪ 1980-2013 increased by 190%
• due to charging for minor drug offences
o Systemic discrimination and the war on people of color
▪ Against Latinos, and African Americans and other ethnic groups
▪ Discrepancy in sentencing for mandatory min
• Crack Cocaine: 3-8x longer
o 1g = 100g cocaine
o associated with African American community
• Cocaine
o Associated with affluent white community
• Fair “etecig Act :
▪ Over Policing:
• Police discretion
• Probable cause
▪ Disproportionate rates of arrest and incarceration per representation
in population
o Police deviance and corruption
▪ Undertaken for the benefit of the organization
▪ Plant drugs to secure convictions
▪ Bribing witness to go against the accused
▪ Burgering the testimony
▪ Police involvement
• Participate in the drug trade
• Bribes
• Steal money, drugs, etc.
o Creation of Drug Dependent Economies
▪ Third-world economies
• Afgan, Columbia, dependent of drug trade – helps sustain
economy
• Money revenue for subsidized consumer products
o Launder money from consumer products
▪ US economy dependent on wage on drugs
• Money from politicians to fight was on drugs
• Private security and prison industry – 1980s
▪ Decriminalization and legislation
▪ Continued investment
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
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CRIM 1650 Full Course Notes
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Document Summary
Politics a(cid:374)d cri(cid:373)i(cid:374)al justice policy: (cid:862)the war o(cid:374) drugs(cid:863) January 31, 2017: ronald regan, neo-co(cid:374)servatis(cid:373), a(cid:374)d the co(cid:374)te(cid:373)porary (cid:862)war o(cid:374) drugs(cid:863) 1981-1989: death of college basketball star and other stars due to cocaine overdose. Evidence that it was spreading beyond cities to suburbs crack: associated with racialized groups, reduce the size and scale of stake, usa lost their competitive advantage. Ideological change: crime, drug use, increasingly viewed on individualized terms, reframed as moral limitation. Scapegoat for variety of social problems at this time. Not a lot of evidence to support the gover(cid:374)(cid:373)e(cid:374)t"s case of drug use. Casual users of drugs were the targets rather than heavy users. 1971 drugs are a public enemy: bush sr: principles and tactics, reduce supply. Interception and seizure: domestic enforcement: increase in funding for anti-drug units. Implementation of increasingly punitive sentencing mandatory minimums: eliminate demand, advertising for drug free america, no recreational using, effectiveness. War on drugs was therefore a failure: effects.
