DRUG PROHIBITION SHOULD BE ENDED

To the Editor,

Letter writer Kenneth Tupper's astute observations Re: Canada's drug policy
sadly outdated, Aug. 19 mirror those of a growing group of police, judges
and other criminal justice professionals.

Based on our long years of experience working the front lines of the
drug war we have concluded that it's time to end drug
prohibition.

Across North America, citizens are realizing the futility of asking
police and the criminal justice system to "control" a multi-billion
dollar annual illegal drug market. Despite the best intentions, police
have no way to monitor and control a market run by mysterious,
unidentified players who work behind closed doors and on the streets
and alleys of our neighborhoods.

That's the common sense approach we've applied the past 72 years for
the most dangerous and risky drugs - alcohol, tobacco and
pharmacueticals.

Legalizing drugs will not solve all the real problems we have that are
the byproducts of drug abuse.

But it will eliminate virtually all violence affiliated with the
illegal market. And it will allow police and public regulators to
identify all dealers thanks to licensed regulation.

Meanwhile, the tens of billions of taxpayers' dollars spent across
North America to wage the 35-year-old, frutiless war on drugs can be
rechanneled into providing improved education and more drug treatment
options for those citizens with true abuse problems.

JACK A. COLE

Law Enforcement

Against Prohibition

Medford, Ma.