In November 1996, Arizona voters approved a ballot initiative that permits illegal drugs to be prescribed for certain illnesses, provided that two doctors agree on the treatment and provide scientific research to back up their approach.The measure also allows drug users the option of probation and drug treatment in lieu of jail for their first two convictions, and prohibits the incarceration of nonviolent drug offenders until their third conviction.

Phoenix surgeon Jeffrey Singer, a spokesperson for the ballot measure, claims that the new law reflects the public’s attitudes toward drug abuse and addiction. According to Singer, research conducted on attitudes toward current drug policy showed that people “firmly rejected the policy of ‘do drugs, do time.’ They believed treatment was much more appropriate than imprisonment for drug users. This belief was so strong that they...