Drug Offenders In American Prisons

Drug Offenders in American Prisons: The Parasite Within
“I am convinced that imprisonment is a way of pretending to solve the problem of crime. It does nothing for the victims of crime”
-Howard Zinn, You Can't Be Neutral on a Moving Train: A Personal History of Our Times Among problems the United States faces, one of the most prominent is the incarceration of nonviolent drug offenders. While the jailing of drug offenders does not seem so serious at first glance, under close inspection this proves otherwise. Among the flaws of this system, are the elevated crime rates that compare poorly to the rate of nations worldwide, the excessive budget wasted on housing these drug offenders, and finally, the sheer unconstitutionality of it all. By
In Oyez’s summary of Robinson v. California, the majority vote (6-2) agreed that imprisoning persons with a narcotics “illness” is a strict violation of the Eighth and Sixteenth Amendment, no different from the execution of an intellectually challenged person. The typical possession charge is punishable by about twenty five years on average, and with the sheer amount of drug offenders, it is no surprise prisons are overpopulated. The Eighth Amendment in its entirety, states, “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted”(“The Constitution of the United States,” Amendment Eight) which is clearly not the case when huge numbers of nonviolent offenders spend almost a third of their lives in prison over an addiction that they cannot control. The scale of punishment for a drug offense is equivalent to that of a first time murderer; the crime is completely disproportionate to punishment, and classifies under “cruel and unusual”, without a doubt. Conclusively, even though it is still in practice, jailing drug offenders is completely illegal, violating the Eighth
Prominently, the exponential uprise of America’s crime rate, the financial leech from other departments, and the sheer illegality of the punishment are all reasons why a federal law needs to be passed in order to treat and rehabilitate those addicted to illegal substances, rather than punish them. The flaws within this system are detrimental not only to the prisoners in question, but the entire United States. For example, funding for students who have great potential is wasted detaining an addict with no control over their problem instead of offering them legitimate help. The benefits of rehabilitation for nonviolent drug offenders clearly surpasses the current system in every way. The citizens of the U.S. must vote a law through that will rectify the problem; nonviolent drug addicts must be rehabilitated rather than imprisoned. The time to act is