Why Our Drug Laws Have Failed: A Judicial Indictment Of War On Drugs

Our drug prohibition policy is hopeless, just as Prohibition, our alcohol prohibition policy, was before it. Today there are more drugs in our communities and at lower prices and higher strengths than ever before. We have built large numbers of prisons, but they are overflowing with non-violent drug offenders. The huge profits made from drug sales are corrupting people and institutions here and abroad. And far from being protected by our drug prohibition policy, our children are being recruited by it to a lifestyle of drug use and drug selling. Judge Gray's book drives a stake through the heart of the War on Drugs. After documenting the wide-ranging harms caused by this failed policy, Judge Gray also gives us hope. We have viable options. The author evaluates these options, ranging from education and drug treatment to different strategies for taking the profit out of drug-dealing. Many officials will not say publicly what they acknowledge privately about the failure of the War on Drugs. Politicians especially are afraid of not appearing i??tough on drugsi??'. But Judge Gray's conclusions as a veteran trial judge and former federal prosecutor are reinforced by the testimonies of more than forty other judges nationwide. Author note: James P. Gray is Judge of the Superior Court in Orange County in Southern California. He has served as former federal prosecutor in Los Angeles and as a criminal defense attorney as a member of the JAG Corps in the Navy. In 1998 he made an unsuccessful run for Congress as a Republican against Bob Dornan. Judge Gray has discussed issues of drug policy on more than one hundred radio and TV shows and numerous drug forums around the country.

Customer Reviews:

It's Time to End the Insanity of the Failed Drug War

By Bryan Carey "Bryan Carey" - November 5, 2003

Judge James Gray has served in several capacities, including prosecutor, defense attorney, and judge as well as his recent career move as an author and possible political candidate. Through his work in the legal system, he has witnessed the corruption, the injustice, and the overall insanity of the War on Drugs. He wrote this book as an educational piece and as a call to political action.Gray presents dozens of quotes from individuals in government, in law, and in other walks of life who have observed the failures of the drug war and know that the laws against drug use are actually more harmful than the drugs themselves. Gray shows how the drug laws have been used to justify expansion of government power and erosion of civil liberties. He shows how drug laws corrupt law enforcement officials and often lead to early paroling of violent criminals in order to make room in prison cells for non- violent drug offenders. Most politicians refuse to touch this issue (with a few exceptions,... read more

This book says what many of us are thinking

By W. D. Brewer "Blueparrot1966" - August 1, 2001

The war on drugs is a difficult and emotional topic. As a "law and order" type conservative, it goes against my grain to side in opposition to the law enforcement and government communities. But as I am also a closet Libertarian, I have been increasingly alarmed by the destruction of our constitutional rights and civil society that has become the legacy of the War on Drugs.Judge Gray thoroughly sums up the views of many Americans such as myself. We are not in any way part of the drug culture (Usually one of the first accusations leveled against opponents of the war on drugs), it's just that we've come to see the insanity of our policies on this topic. Pulling every aspect of the War on Drugs together, he paints a comprehensive picture of self destructive insanity that I had never imagined- even though I was already familiar with many of the subjects he raises. Then he spells out the entire variety of other options available to us to handle this problem. They range... read more

This book will convince you!

By just bein' Frank - May 5, 2004

I am a social conservative and previously supported the War on Drugs because, well, drugs are bad.But I read this book and became convinced that the U.S. couldn't have devised a better strategy than the War on Drugs to ENRICH drug dealers and INCREASE harms affiliated with drug abuse. If Americans had ANY IDEA how reckless and counterproductive our current drug policy is, there would be HUGE political pressure for change. That's where "Why Our Drug Laws Have Failed" comes in. Conservative judge James P. Gray -- who presides over the Superior Court in Orange County, CA -- is certainly "in the know" about drug abuse issues. With over 20 years' experience as a judge, Gray is on the front lines of the War on Drugs. A former prosecutor and self-proclaimed "drug warrior," Gray's own efforts only persuaded him that the War on Drugs is causing much more harm than good. (I took off one star because Gray is a decent writer, but much of his sentence... read more