The Addict as a Criminal.

Early in this century the Narcotics Division of the U.S. Treasury Department obtained the official seal of approval for a "criminal approach" to the drug problem. This definition of addicts as criminals was strengthened under the vigorous leadership of Harry J. Anslinger, director of the separate Bureau of Narcotics established in 1930, and became further entrenched with the passage of the Marihuana Tax Act and subsequent "get tough" legislation in the 1950's. Beginning in the late 1950's, criticism of the nation's drug policy by scholars, physicians, and legal experts increased in volume and intensity; Anslinger retired in 1962; the drug agency was reorganized; passage of the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act signaled--or so it seemed to some people--an era of enlightenment. In spite of all these forces for change, the cornerstone of our approach to drugs remains what it was forty-five years ago: the addict is defined in the law as a criminal, is dealt with officially as a criminal, and is widely regarded as a criminal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]