Melissa Montague. Professor Robert Peach. English 100.

There is no doubt that crimes committed by these addicts are harmful to our society, but there is certain validation to course of their actions. So if people that have this addiction illness are ultimately incarcerated, it is the responsibility of our government to provide them with holistic treatment. This will provide purpose for the convicts that truly want to overcome their addiction and become contributing members of society once they are released. Our health and public polices can have positive change in the future if leaders followed the belief of New Jersey’s state Governor Christie, who fully supported drug and alcohol treatment because making this treatment “more available for everybody” was “part of government’s job”.

In our society we are faced with a drug addiction problem that is not being dealt with properly. Our use of incarceration as a means to deal with this

In the United States, the rise in both illicit drug and alcohol abuse is continuing at an alarming rate. In 2009 alone, the United States saw 23.5 million people over the age of 12 needing treatment for drug or alcohol abuse (National Institute of Drug Abuse, 2011). Per the Drug Enforcement Administration, in the same year (2009), almost 32,000 arrests on drug related charges were carried out (Drug Enforcement Administration, 2015). Even with the threat of prison time, and most federal prisons being filled with inmates on drug and alcohol related charges, 46.4% in 2016 the use and abuse of these substances is still on the rise (Federal Bureau of Prisons, 2016). Because of this, and the seemingly ineffective incarceration system, the call for

Drug addiction is most often defined as a chronic progressive relapsing cycle in which an individual experiences excessive compulsions in using a mood altering substance despite the consequences associated with the drug. Drug addiction is also considered a disease that affects the brain; which results in a chemical imbalance caused by the abuse of illegal substances. The effects of drug usage can cause long term brain damage and can lead to many other self destructive behaviors such as violence and drug arrest. Many offenses are committed under the influence of an illegal substance such as DWI’s, fatalities, theft, domestic violence, homicidal and suicidal murders. These destructive behaviors can result in criminal convictions within the criminal judicial system. Drug related charges in the United States have quadrupled in number within the last ten years. The question that arises among the majority of the population: Is incarceration the ultimate solution in addressing the needs of an individual who may be suffering from the effects of a drug addiction?

Take a look around at some of the problems in our world. Of course, some are more obvious than others to the average human eye. Issues such as abortion, gun control, and the war on terror are three of the most blatant problems our wonderful country faces on a day-to-day basis. But my mind goes to one which unfortunately in a lot of cases unless it has personally affected you, you might not think of it as a huge problem in our world. When I was prompted this question my mind went to one problem, heroin. Did you know that heroin usage has more than doubled among young adults ages 18-25 in the past decade (cdc.gov)? How about that Heroin-related overdose deaths in the U.S. have increased by nearly 300 percent in recent years (usnews.com)? The creation, transportation, and usage of heroin is destroying the lives of Americans and it needs to be stopped.

The debilitating disease “addiction” naturally creates criminals, somebody willing to go to any extent to obtain there drug of choice. Sadly, The solution has always been to incarcerate the individuals involved, without taking into consideration the extenuating circumstances surrounding the offenders criminal behavior. This does nothing but fuel the addiction that ultimately led to the crime being committed in the first place, leaving the newly minted pariah with no where to go but back to all he 's ever known, an anti-social life style. Making another statistic to add to the already high recidivism rate in prisons. Treatment is a good place to start working towards a resolution, and is finally being implemented into the penal system as an alternative sentencing option. Saving and changing many lives while giving the offender an opportunity to turn his/her life around. While some members of our community might understandably disagree with what may be perceived as lenient sentences. The success rate and results can speak for themselves. The treatment alternative is proving to be as beneficial to the community as it is to the offender.

The American criminal justice system is far from perfect and recently there has been an outcry from many in the nation demanding that the system receive an overhaul to increase efficiency, remove prejudicial practices, and adopt a more rehabilitative stance. One area in which I believe the criminal justice system has failed is in the treatment of those addicted to illegal substances. I propose that offenses related to the recreational use of illegal drugs be handled by the public health system and not the criminal justice system.

Originally, the thoughts on sending drug addicts to prison was rather negative, due to the possibilities to increase treatment options. Looking at the evidence now for various methods of treatment execution, it is more of a mixed feeling, gray area, as opposed to black and white. From hearing the class debate information, there is an increased belief in the prison system to handle addicts, though there should be less of a reason in the first place for addicts to need treatment via this method regardless. The process of prisons working to help those addicted to substances is a service that is useful but also seems to lack the long-term ability to treat, due to the lack of continuation after the sentence. The money being poured into this treatment

This video opened my eyes to the fact that addiction is a common issue that affects too many Americans. In the video, it said that the prognosis of addiction is worse than the prognosis of cancer.

I strongly believe that the criminal justice system needs to go the extra mile for addicts instead of incarnating them. A lot of crimes such as robbery, burglary and theft have a root of drugs as the main problem. Throwing someone in jail does not fix the problem instead it introduces the addict to people similar to them. Therefore, the addicted is not cleared of their addiction and most likely will become a repeat offender.

Substance abuse is a catastrophic illness. People put it upon themselves when they become addicted, but unfortunately, there is a lack of support when an addiction becomes a lifestyle. Awareness is the main attack for the battle of substance abuse and sadly, most people are blind to the fact of how serious addiction can be. Educating youth on the consequences of doing drugs and consuming alcohol is the most significant way to ensure they make smart choices. For the people who are already suffering the evil, a strong support system must be implemented in their lives. Obviously, 12 step programs are active all across America today, but is it enough? I watched my Dad almost die in front of me. The doctors said it was a miracle that he survived

The NDCS, the GC, and the LAC unanimously proclaim that drug abuse should be regarded as a public health issue. Together, they support and propose avenues forward that prescribe treatment as the approach to helping drug users. This is a complete turnaround from the preventative prohibition era where users were targeted to be punished. If carried out successfully, treatment can decrease the prevalence of illicit drug use within society. I say this because I believe that many, if not most, people addicted to illicit substances do not wish to be addicted. Addiction, in the end, is an illness. And illnesses must be treated rather than punished.

There is no doubt that our nation is suffering from addiction. Many of those who have developed an addiction may not be aware that it takes a toll on others’ lives as well as their own. Addiction is an illness that affects a lot of people. It doesn’t have a preference of occupation, race, gender or age. Anyone can be affected by addiction. Millions of people are addicted to a wide range of drugs and alcohol. However, there are other different forms of addiction that are outside of the scope of drugs and alcohol. It is true that people can be addicted to anything whether its smartphones, sex, exercise, shopping, food, or gambling. It is vital to know how these addictions can have a negative effect on our nation.

Some people truly do not understand how serious an addiction really can be; they even used the word lightly. They say thing like I’m addicted to shoes, or I’m addicted to eating chocolate. They can really like shoes or really like to eat chocolate but can they truly say that they are addicted to these things. The common definition for the word addition is to have a compulsive need to have something on a regular bases, that can means every day. Addiction is looked at as being a chronic disease of the brain. Just like any other disease addiction can take over your life. The most common addiction that hurts our society more then we know is drug or alcohol addictions. Not only is it taking over our community’s but it is also taking over our jails and prisons. There are over 6.8 million people in America that are suffering with a drug or alcohol addiction, and many of these people are suffering alone. Since they have these addictions many times they are arrest for using drugs or committing a crime so that they can get the drugs they need. There are over two million people serving time in our jails and prisons and over 500,000 are there because of a drug related crime. Drug and alcohol addiction has become an increasing problem over the years. We need to look more in to making sure that these individuals get the right help instead of just locking them up and throwing away the key. By doing this we could decrease their chances of them reusing and re-offending and returning to jail

Approximately half of prison and jail populations meet the criteria for substance abuse or dependency. Immediately when one is arrested for the use or selling of drugs a portrait of failure, insignificance and despondency arise from typical judgment. The judicial system and drug addiction have long been in conflict with one another regarding the decision to prosecute or provide treatment among users. The prosecution of drug addicts is seemingly the right thing to do under certain circumstances, but statistically, it is proven incarceration is a negative impact on abusers. When a drug user is jailed it is twice as likely they re-offend resulting in wasted tax dollars and not only that, but relapse is likely to happen after release. Although sympathetic concerns are not plausible in regards to the decision to incarcerate, it should be taken into consideration addiction is a scientifically proven disease. If drug users are offered treatment instead of immediate incarceration than tax dollars are saved, public health and safety are no longer compromised and the risk of relapse is reduced significantly. Whilst some believe drug users should be immediately incarcerated, drug users should be able to attend treatment instead of immediate prosecution.