Dan P. Alsobrooks

Dan P. Alsobrooks is a district attorney general for the 23rd Judicial District in Tennessee, and president of the National District Attorneys Association in Virginia. In the viewpoint that follows, he argues that drug use causes crime. To obtain money to support their habit, writes Alsobrooks, drug users steal and murder. He notes that a large proportion of federal prison inmates were under the influence of drugs when they committed their crimes. Alsobrooks criticizes supporters of drug legalization who argue that drug law penalties should be reduced or that drug abuse is a victimless crime. He maintains that most people in prisons for drug offenses are there for dealing drugs, not simply possessing them, and he cites statistics on how drug abuse costs society. Alsobrooks warns that while America’s drug policy has been effective in reducing drug...