THE NARCOTICS PROBLEM - IN PROPER PERSPECTIVE

Senate Bill 81 by Senator Regan and others, as amended,
places the narcotics problem in proper perspective. It supplies
what is missing in our present laws which permit narcotic addicts to
return to their communities after periods of totally ineffective
incarceration. Once back in their former environment, addicts
inevitably become implicated in other and increasingly more serious
narcotic law violations.

It seems paradoxical, but true, to say: (a) Senate Bill
81 is both the "toughest" narcotic bill in the Legislature and yet
the most humane. (b) It is in no sense a "compromise" measure, yet
one which the legislator, judge, narcotic law enforcement officer,
district attorney, member of the medical profession, and the public
ean enthusiastically support.

Senate Bill 81 dees the following:

1. It accomplishes the number one objective of all law enforce-
ment personnel; namely, it gets the addict off the street.

The spread of addiction can only be prevented by
"isolating a principal agent of dissemination, the
narcotic addict." (James V. Lowry, M.D., Medical Officer
in Charge U.S. Public Health Service Hospital, Lexington,
Kentucky, December 1956)

"Narcotic addicts should not be permitted to remain on
the streets until they become a police problem...
When the addict peddler is removed from the streets of
California, the narcotics traffic in this state will be
substantially eliminated." (Governor' é Special Study
Commission on Narcotics, December 6, 1 60)

"The general practitioner should realize that it is
almost impossible to treat addictg outside of institu-
tions." (Dr. Harris Isbell, Chief of Addiction Research
Center, National Institute of Mental Health)

"  . , addiction is spread principally by direct social
contact of addicts with vulnerable non-addicts - not by
pushers..." (David P. Ausubel, M.D. Ph.D., University
of Illinois.

" . We need more than our agents to win the war
against the trafficker. We have to cure the addict who
has already become infected, that's the only way we'll
be completely successful." (Harry J. Anslinger, U.S.
Commissioner of Narcotics, April 16, 1961)

 

 
2. It makes the detention of addicts compulsory.

3. It excludes from the program the criminally aggressive addict,
meaning those convicted of:

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But many addicts are not criminally aggressive persons.

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U.S. Commissioner Anslinger, in his article in the Los
Angeles Times, April 16, 1961, asserts that the "con-
finement of addicts in appropriate institutions must be
mandatory for the addict, not optional."

“Compulsory institutional treatment in a drug free
environment is essential ..." (David P. Ausubel,

M.D., Ph.D., September 4, 1959)

"The history of institutional treatment of drug addic-
tion by the Federal Government in the United States .
shows that compulsory treatment is much more effective
than voluntary treatment ..." (Page 22, U.S. Govern-
ment Printing Office, Pamphlet on Narcotics, published
in 1953).

Murder +3} Forcible rape

Attempt to commit murder 9 Any felony involving
Kidnapping bodily harm

Robbery (10) Any violation of narcotic
Burglary in the first laws for which the mini-
degree mum term prescribed is
Mayhem more than 5 years in
Assault with a deadly state prison.

weapon

Many criminals have turned to narcotics and the mere
fact that they have added addiction to their misdeeds
should not entitle them to escape state prison. As

Dr. Harris Isbell of the Federal Hospital at Lexington,
Kentucky, stated in his report (Public Health Service
Publication No. 94, page 3):

"Criminals are quite likely to hecome addicts since
they move in the underworld where other criminals
are actually selling narcotics and looking for new
customers. This does not mean that the use of drugs
Girectly causes crimes but only that criminals
frequently abuse drugs. Neither does it mean that
all addicts are criminals; many are not.”

 

"It is a common misconception that crimes of violence
and sexual orgies result from narcotic consumption.

Even in desperate attempts to obtain a supply the addict
with his passive personality is more apt to connive than

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to act with aggression and violence." (Dr. Norman B.
Atkins, M.D., in his review of the findings of the |
Education Research Center of the National Institute of
Mental Health. )

"Tt is of course well known to students of the subject
that heroin, like morphine, is a soothing drug that
reduces the impulse to aggressive crime.” (Lawrence
Kolb, M.D., former Assistant Surgeon General in charge
of the Division of Mental Hygiene of the Public Health
Service; also former Medical Consultant to the Bureau
of Prisons of California)

4, The program is limited to addicts of hard narcotics. (It
excludes marijuana. )

5. The program includes persons in "imminent danger of addiction
to narcotics.” The repeated use of heroin places a person in
"imminent danger of addiction."

"The cases also illustrate that the project is success-~-
ful when it results in the apprehension of a narcotics
user before he becomes addicted - before he is hooked -
before he loses his job, his family, his friends - and
before he must turn to a constant round of crime to pay
for the narcotics that now only keep him from the agony
of withdrawal." (Richard A. McGee, Director of Calif.
Dept. of Corrections, Vol. 13, No. 4, 1960 Calif. Youth
Authority Quarterly)

6. It fixes a minimum period of detention of 6 months; a maximum
of 5 years (if the criminal charge is a misdemeanor) and
10 years (if the criminal charge is a felony).

Addicts admitted to the federal hospitals at Lexington
and Fort Worth are expected to remain under treatment
for a period of 43 months. (Harris Isbell, M.D.)

"The rehabilitation program includes confinement in a
drug free environment for 4 to 6 months... ."

(Abraham Wikler, M.B., Chief, Neuropsychiatric Section,
U.S. Public Health Service Hospital, Lexington, Kentucky)

7. Commitment of the addict is for an indeterminate period. The
length of his stay depends upon his progress under treatment
at the institution.

Thus, if the addict shows no progress he could be kept
for the maximum periods of 5 or 10 years. It is not
intended that he be released from the program merely
because he shows no improvement. Both the addict and
society are better off with the addict living in the
detention and treatment facility.

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6,

7.

to act with aggression and violence." (Dr. Norman B.
Atkins, M.D., in his review of the findings of the
Education Research Center of the National Institute of
Mental Health.)

"It is of course well known to students of the subject
that heroin, like morphine, is a soothing drug that
reduces the impulse to aggressive crime. (Lawrence
Kolb, M.D., former Assistant Surgeon General in charge
of the Division of Mental Hygiene of the Public Health
Service; also former Medical Consultant to the Bureau
of Prisons of California)

The program is limited to addicts of hard narcotics. (It
excludes marijuana. )

The program includes persons in "imminent danger of addiction
to narcotics.” The repeated use of heroin places a person in
"imminent danger of addiction."

"The cases also illustrate that the project is success-
ful when it results in the apprehension of a narcotics
user before he becomes addicted - before he is hooked -
before he loses his job, his family, his friends - and
before he must turn to a constant round of crime to pay
for the narcotics that now only keep him from the agony
of withdrawal." (Richard A. McGee, Director of Calif.
Dept. of Corrections, Vol. 13, No. 4, 1960 Calif. Youth
Authority Quarterly)

It fixes a minimum period of detention of 6 months; a maximum
of 5 years (if the criminal charge is a misdemeanor) and
10 years (if the criminal charge is a felony).

Addicts admitted to the federal hospitals at Lexington
and Fort Worth are expected to remain under treatment
for a period of 43 months, (Harris Isbell, M.D.)

"The rehabilitation program includes confinement in a

drug free environment for 4 to 6 months... ."

(Abraham Wikler, M.B., Chief, Neuropsychiatric Section,
U.S. Public Health Service Hospital, Lexington, Kentucky)

Commitment of the addict is for an indeterminate period. The
length of his stay depends upon his progress under treatment
at the institution.

Thus, if the addict shows no progress he could be kept
for the maximum periods of 5 or 10 years. It is not
intended that he be released from the program merely
because he shows no improvement. Both the addict and
society are better off with the addict living in the
detention and treatment facility.

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8.

10.

On the other hand, at any time after the 6 months’
minimum, if the Director of Corrections feels that the
addict has recovered to such an extent that he is no
longer a menace to the health and safety of himself and
others and worthy of an opportunity on parole, he would
be certified to the Adult Authority as being eligible
for parole.

A California Rehabilitation Center is established for the
detention, employment, education, treatment and rehabilitation
of persons addicted to narcotics.

The Special Study Commission on Narcotics recommended
(Dec. 9, 1960) that adequate facilities be provided

"so that every known addict may be eventually removed
from the community under a voluntary or involuntary
civil court commitment to a state hospital for quaran-
tine, withdrawal from the psysiological use of narcotics,
and rehabilitative treatment."

Re-education in a drug-free environment is essential.

"In re-education vocational training assumes a very

important role, since many addicts have never acquired

sociably useful skills which could serve as a basis for

self-support, or for sources of satisfaction and pre-

servation of self-esteem. Likewise the desirability of |

recreational activity and improvement in general health |
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requires little justification." (Abraham Wikler, M.D.)

Federal financial aid is available. "The mental health
research grant program of the Public Health Service may
be used to support grants for promising research pro-
jects in connection with experimental treatment
programs, and other phases of drug addiction," (Carl L.
Anderson, Ph.D., Special Program Development Section,
National Institute of Mental Health, April 13, 1961)

The detention and treatment facility is placed under the
control of the Director of Corrections. Trained custodial
officers are required to keep the addicts in and narcotics
out. A professional staff would direct the treatment of the
inmates,

"Compulsory institutional treatment in a drug-free
environment is essential." (David P. Ausubel, M.D.,
Ph.D.

 

An escape from the detention facility is given the same effect
as an escape from a state prison.

 

 
11. We should not contaminate our mental hospitals by flooding
them with drug addicts.

Insanity due to morphine or heroin and other opiates is
so rare that it is not even mentioned in reports from
mental hospitals, asserts Dr. Kolb, who states: "In

40 years of experience with thousands of opiate addicts,
and psychotics who are not addicts, I have seen only
two persons whose psychosis was due to an opiate."

l2. Expensive hospital construction is not required.

Recognizing the shortage of hospital facilities, U.S.
Commissioner of Narcotics Anslinger suggests that even
old C.C.C. camps could be reactivated and used for the
purpose. (Los Angeles Times, April 16, 1961)

"Treatment is primarily psychological. Possibly the
greatest emphasis is on the promotion in the treatment
unit of an attitude in which the inmates actively
support each other in their efforts to understand and
overcome the problems that induce them to use narcotics.
The techniques used here are those of group psycho-
therapy, widely used in the treatment of the emotionally
disturbed." (Richard A. McGee, State Director of Dept.
of Corrections)

To the same effect: James V. Lowry, M.D., Medical
Officer in Charge U.S. Public Health Service Hospital,
Lexington, Kentucky, in "Hospital Treatment of the
Narcotic Addict." (December 1956)

13. Close supervision of the parolee after release from the
detention facility is required.

On this point all of the experts quoted in this analysis

are in full accord - e.g. ". . . addicts require exten-
sive posthospital supervision with intensive application
of rehabilitation techniques." (Kenneth W. Chapman,

M.D., formerly Consultant on Narcotic Drug Addiction,
National Institute of Mental Health. )

Paroled federal prisoners made the best record from the
standpoint of abstinence. It was this greup that
received the most posthospital supervision, reported
James V. Lowry, M.D. ( Dec. 1956)

"There is almost complete lack of followup care or out-
patient supervision on the community level to assist
the addict once he is discharged or released from state
or federal hospitals. .. . This failure can nullify
any benefits the addict may have received while in any
of these institutions.” (Report of the Subcommittee on

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14,

15.

16,

Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Assembiy Interim Com-
mittee, page 28)

The Director of Corrections is authorized to establish a

"half way house" as a pilot project to determine the effective-
ness of such control upon the addict's rehabilitation after
his release on parole.

"Hospital treatment can start a patient on the way to
recovery but it cannot provide a lifelong immunity that
protects the patient against relapse. Hospital treat~-
ment can initiate rehabilitation but it must be com-
pleted after the patient returns to the community."
(James V. Lowry, M.D.)

"It is necessary to have a related outpatient program
where the patient can continue with his group and
individual therapy and resume contact with the worid.
Much work needs to be done to help the addict integrate
into the community and to counteract the old addict
environment." (Norman B. Atkins, M.D.)

Federal grants to the states are now available "to pro-
vide the essential post-hospital services to addict
patients in their community rehabilitation programs."
(Carl L. Anderson, Ph.D.)

Earnings of parolees are to be controlled while residing in
such "half way house." Charges for maintenance would be
deducted therefrom. Thus, the "half way house" would be
partially self-supporting.

Parole violators are subject to being retaken and returned to
the detention facility; just as other parole violators are
handled.

It will not be necessary to prove that the individual
had committed a crime while on parole. A return to the
use of narcotics or other violation of the conditions
of parole is sufficient.

We face the fact that some, maybe the majority, will
fail on parole. For the addict to succeed he must have
motivation to live without narcotic drugs. "To date
medical science has discovered no way of artifically
instilling this motivation. It has to be generated
within the patient by the patient, or by persons in the
environment who are important to the patient, or by the
demands of society. There is no way to measure motiva-
tion objectively. Its presence has to be inferred from
verbalized attitudes and from actions. (James V.
Lowry, M.D.) However, where a person does fail on

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eal.

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parole we should recall:

"Truly incurable addicts are less dangerous to
society when incarcerated for life .. . than
when provided with a maintenance dose of drugs
and left free to deal in the illicit market,
to spread the drug habit, and to prey upon

the public." (David P. Ausubel, M.D.,Ph D.)

If a parolee abstains from the use of narcotics for at
least three consecutive years and has otherwise complied
with the conditions of parole, the Adult Authority may
certify the defendant back to the court in which the
criminal charges were pending The court then discharges
him from the program and may dismiss the criminal charges.

A discharge of a parolee from the program and a dis-
missal of the charges against him release him from
all penalties and disabilities resulting from the
crime of which he had been convicted. Similar to
provisions under 1203.4 Penal Code)

If such original charges are not dismissed and the
defendant is sentenced thereon, time served while
under commitment under the program shall be credited
on such sentence.

The parole program applies to misdemeanants as well as
felons.

If a defendant is convicted of any crinein a Municipal
or Justice Court, and it appears to the judge that the
defendant is addicted, the judge adjourns the criminal
proceedings and certifies him to the Superior Court to
determine if he qualifies for the commitment under the
program.

Similarly, upon conviction of a defendant for any crime
in the Superior Court (excepting those aggressive-type
crimes expressly excluded from the operation of the
program) the judge adjourns the proceedings and proceeds
as indicated.

The commitment itself is a civil-type commitment similar
to that provided for under Section 5360 of the Welfare
and Institutions Code.

The program also applies to the involuntary commitment
of addicts not charged with a crime.

If the person so committed or any friend
in his behalf is dissatisfied with the order of
the court committing him, he may demand a hearing
by judge or jury in substantial compliance with
the present provisions of Section 5125 of the
Welfare and Institutions Code.

23. An addict who doesn't have criminal charges pending
against him is nevertheless committed for a period of
from six months to five years subject to the right of
parole in the same manner as heretofore outlined.

He becomes eligible to be discharged from the pro-
gram by the Adult Authority if he abstains from
the use of narcotics for at least three consecutive
years while on parole and has otherwise complied
with the conditions of parole.

24, The Director of Corrections is required to engage in a
program of research in the detention, treatment and
rehabilitation of narcotic addicts.

Federal grants to the states are now available
to assist in such projects. (Carl P Anderson, Ph,D.)

25. The bill contains an article requiring the registration
of all narcotic addicts, save and except those committed
under the program.

Presiding Judge Louis H. Burke
Los Angeles Superior Court
April 24, 1961

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