USA: Federal Anti-Methamphetamine Legislation Becomes Law

On March 10, President Bush signed an anti-methamphetamine bill into law as part of the renewal of the PATRIOT Act.

This bill requires retailers to keep many cold medicines containing pseudoephedrine behind the counter, and stipulates that sick people must show identification and sign a log book to buy their decongestant. This strategy is modeled after laws implemented over the last two years in several states, which are reporting fewer "mom and pop" methamphetamine labs, but unchanged demand for the drug itself. Importation of methamphetamine from Mexico has increased to fill the gap, leading to an increase in prohibition-related violence in some areas as drug cartels move in.

The methamphetamine bill also contains an enhanced penalty of up to 20 years for manufacturing or selling methamphetamine in a household where a minor lives, a provision which could devastate families by assigning long prison sentences to parents who might instead benefit from treatment. Fortunately, this enhanced penalty is not mandatory. In fact, thanks largely to the work DPA and other groups did last fall, the only mandatory minimum in the final bill was a lifetime sentence for kingpins - a designation that affects a handful of people every year.

In an encouraging sign, the bill authorizes funding for a grant program to provide comprehensive services to pregnant women and mothers who need treatment. DPA applauds the inclusion of treatment in federal methamphetamine legislation, and will be looking for additional opportunities to focus the federal response on treatment instead of ineffective, draconian sentencing policies.

Newshawk: http://www.napnt.org
Pubdate: Fri, 17 March 2006
Source: Drug Policy Alliance (USA- Web)
Website: http://www.drugpolicy.org/