Eric E. Sterling

Eric E. Sterling is president of the Criminal Justice Policy Foundation in Washington, D.C. In the following viewpoint Sterling maintains that law enforcement agencies are spending too much time and money on drug intervention instead of fighting crime and terrorism. Their efforts in the war on drugs are wasted, he asserts; deaths from drug abuse have doubled, drug purity has increased, and illegal drugs are easier to obtain now than they were thirty years ago. Therefore, he contends, drugs should be legalized and regulated so that law enforcement can focus on fighting terrorism.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. What percentage of the FBI’s effort was devoted to fighting drugs in 1998–2000, as cited by the author?
2. How many arrests are...