Everything changes when the criminal and victim are supposedly the same person – as is the case with drug users during prohibition. When citizens aren’t willing to assist in police investigations, police work becomes immeasurably more difficult. America’s murder clearance rate – that is the rate at which murders are solved – was a dismal 61.6% in 2017, and some cities, such as Baltimore, Chicago, and Detroit, the clearance rate was under 30%. If the victim is black, it’s even worse. Over a 13-year period in Los Angeles, an arrest was made in only 38% of the 2,677 killings of black male victims. Nationwide, aggravated assaults are solved only 53.4% of the time, and for other violent and property crimes, such as rape (34.5%), it’s even worse. Yet, according to one study, between 2002 and 2012, NYC Officer Friendly has been replaced with Officer Shut the F*** Up, and that has led to immense problems with solving actual crimes – violent and property crime – again, particularly in poor, minority neighborhoods. Justice’s investigation of the Ferguson Police Department found that blacks were two times more likely than whites to be searched during a traffic stop but were 26% less likely to be found with contraband. Police-citizen interactions are now more characterized by hostility than helpfulness, particularly in minority neighborhoods. This isn’t Norman Rockwell’s America anymore.
police officers spent one million hours making 440,000 arrests for marijuana possession. And throughout the nation in 2016, even after marijuana legalization had begun in some states, more people were arrested for marijuana violations than all murder, rape, aggravated assault, and robbery arrests combined. And as the backlog of murder cases builds up on the detectives’ desks, the SWAT team is gearing up to kick down the door of another suspected drug user or dealer. inhumane, it’s silly. Addicts continue to use despite losing jobs, money, loved ones, their health, and so much more. In fact, drug addiction is defined as the compulsive use of a substance despite negative consequences. Therefore, “if adding punishment worked to fight addiction,” writes addiction researcher (and former addict) Maia Szalavitz, “the condition itself couldn’t exist.” Yet we continue on with the old mantra: “Taking drugs will ruin your life, so if you take drugs we’re going to ruin your life.” Being caught with drugs can truly ruin your life. Under federal law, students with drug convictions become ineligible for federal financial aid, and approximately 200,000 students have been denied aid since 1998. Moreover, those convicted of felonies suffer lifelong problems with employment, housing, and education. One study estimated that the diminished employment prospects of felons can cost between $78 and $87 billion in any given year. Of course, many violent ARREST AND INCARCERATION Incarcerating drug users is not only
American Consequences 47
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