Punishment for Drugs: A Possible Alternative. Essay

Among existing social problems, drug addiction constitutes the threat that impends over the modern world and is all the more dangerous as it is not only drug abuse itself that harms people — there are also the antisocial actions undertaken by the desperate narcomaniacs in order to obtain a new portion of their dope. Due to the easiness of access to drugs, drug abuse spreads through the world at an alarming rate, sweeping over generations of young and old, and can already be viewed as a global epidemic. As governments strive to control and prevent illegal actions entailed by drug addiction, measures are taken as to those involved in the distribution and consumption of drugs; and those measures vary depending on the level of offenders’ involvement in the drug issue.

The relations of people with the world of drugs are complex. In certain cases involvement in drugs is motivated by pursuit of profit and stimulated by greediness and cupidity. Criminal activities connected with drug trafficking are numerous, from blackmailing and kidnapping to murder. Society feels the need to be protected and safeguarded from drug-involved people, and in case when the latter display aggression, incarceration is the optimal choice for their fencing off from the others. Actually, when the anti-drug campaign began over two decades ago, imprisonment was seen as the only possible way of defeating drug addiction — a measure which has been debated over the time, as it does not solve all the problems connected with the evil it combats.

For those who are involved in the world of drugs to a degree that does not demand displays of aggression to society, another optimal alternative to mere imprisonment is seen in their rehabilitation. Observing the over-crowdedness of jails by non-violent narcomaniacs, who but for their addiction would have otherwise constituted reasonable members of society, it was suggested to establish special programs for restoring those people to normal life. The hopeless situation of a drug addict, who is desperate to get more and more ‘fixes’, could be resolved by professional help in overcoming the closed circle of their drug-blurred existence. As opposed to traditional corrections system that merely constituted a territory for keeping people away from society and punishing them, rehabilitation of drug addicts offers them a unique opportunity for breaking out of the cycle that their addiction had them living.

The brightest example of such rehabilitation measures can be seen in the system of the so-called ‘drug court’, described by Bean as “a slow-track, court-based treatment program, where the key features are dedicated courtrooms that provide judicially monitored treatment, drug testing, and other services to drug-involved offenders” (235). The uniqueness of drug courts and the argument which allows defending them in face of criticism consists in the fact that their initial aim is not ‘administering justice’ as such, but solving personal problems connected with drug abuse (Bean 238). The judge is viewed not as a cold distant observer, but performs the function of a personal adviser for the offender, and in imposing punishment (s)he designs it so as it works for the offender’s own good:

“In drug court the judge directly controls the offender, which may involve coercing him or her into treatment, praising and rewarding when treatment succeeds, but sanctioning when treatment fails.” (Bean 237)

Thus it is more a paternal/maternal mentor role that is played by the judge developing a trustful relation with the offender, and supported by a team of defense lawyers, prosecutors and probation officers who cooperate to work out the best therapeutic paradigm for each individual offender, seeing the latter “at their most vulnerable” and guiding them on the only path to escape from their apparently hopeless state (Bean 241).

As the results of drug courts system functioning show, drug addicts are efficiently helped to recover and gain balance in normal life (cf. the statement of a former drug addict in Confronting the Cycle of Addiction & Recidivism). Personal gratitude and enthusiasm of people who have been able to conquer the abyss separating narcomaniacs from normal society proves clearly that rehabilitation is the way to go in the war on drugs.

Works Cited

Bean, Philip. “Drug Courts, the Judge, and the Rehabilitative Ideal”. Drug Courts in Theory and Practice. Ed. James L. Nolan. Hawthorne, NY: Walter de Gruyter, Inc., 2002. 235-254.

Confronting the Cycle of Addiction & Recidivism: A Report to Chief Judge Judith S. Kaye by the New York State Commission on Drugs and the Courts. New York State Unified Court System. 2000. Web.