Causes and Effects of the Controlled Substances Act of 1970
In 1970 the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) was put into place by the Congress of the United States Government. This Act, Title II of the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act, is the federal U.S. drug policy which regulates the possession, use, manufacturing and importation of certain controlled substances. The substances controlled under this act fall under various classifications. These classifications are known as schedules. The legislation created 5 schedules with different qualifications for a substance to be included in each. Schedule I includes some of the drugs that are viewed as seriously threatening while schedule V includes drugs that are viewed as not as threatening. A Schedule I drug must fall under one of the following categories.
A. The drug has a high potential for abuse.
B. The drug has no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States. C. There is a lack of accepted safety for use of the drug under medical supervision. [1]
Under schedule I are dangerous and addictive drugs such as heroin and cocaine. Also under schedule I, falling under the same category as opiates and heavy hallucinogens, is Marijuana. Since this Federal Law was passed in 1970, millions of Americans have been arrested and sent to prison for drug related crimes. Many of these drug related crimes were for violations as small as possession of Marijuana. Our prisons are overflowing with these offenders. Although the Controlled Substances Act was passed in 1970, there is an extensive history of drug use in the United States, which has lead to this act. This law has been in the works since the beginning of drug use in America. One of the earliest forms of drug abuse in the United States was with opium. Opium was seen as a resource for pain relief. European explorers and settlers brought crude opium or dissolved opium extract to North America. Many people, including one of our great nation's forefathers, Benjamin Franklin, used opium as
A. The drug has a high potential for abuse.
B. The drug has no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States. C. There is a lack of accepted safety for use of the drug under medical supervision. [1]
Under schedule I are dangerous and addictive drugs such as heroin and cocaine. Also under schedule I, falling under the same category as opiates and heavy hallucinogens, is Marijuana. Since this Federal Law was passed in 1970, millions of Americans have been arrested and sent to prison for drug related crimes. Many of these drug related crimes were for violations as small as possession of Marijuana. Our prisons are overflowing with these offenders. Although the Controlled Substances Act was passed in 1970, there is an extensive history of drug use in the United States, which has lead to this act. This law has been in the works since the beginning of drug use in America. One of the earliest forms of drug abuse in the United States was with opium. Opium was seen as a resource for pain relief. European explorers and settlers brought crude opium or dissolved opium extract to North America. Many people, including one of our great nation's forefathers, Benjamin Franklin, used opium as