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Drug Legalization

A Guide to Selected Government Information Available at WIU's Government Publications Library

(revised 10/08)

Web version of this guide includes links to web resources.

Search Tips

Mix and match these search terms in the library catalog, WestCat , or search law journals in LexisNexis (click LEGAL tab; default search is law reviews) or WestLaw Campus Research :

Search Terms:
drug legalization substance abuse drug control
war on drugs drug prohibition drug war
decriminalization drug treatment drug trade
medical marijuana drug policy drug abuse
'marihuana' is gov't spelling drug courts drug addiction

Relevant Subtopics:
drug war and civil asset forfeiture war on drugs' effect on civil rights and civil liberties
prison overcrowding victimless crimes
medical marijuana states' rights

Federal Government Information

Marijuana and Medicine : the Need for a Science-Based Approach

This hearing challenges the assertion from pro-drug advocates that smoking marijuana is useful for medical purposes by listing ongoing scientific research concerning the various chemicals found in marijuana (and their derivatives) and their potential medical uses using other, more effective delivery systems...like pills. 2004
Y 4.G 74/7:M 33/5

"Medical" Marijuana, Federal Drug Law and the Constitution's Supremacy Clause

In this hearing , the debate is whether states have the right to legalize marijuana, and what the federal government can do based on the constitution's supremacy clause. 2001
Y4.G 74/7: M33/4

The Destructive Impact of Drugs on the United States: How the Legalization of Drugs Would Jeopardize the Health and Safety of the American People and Our Nation

A monograph summarizing the goals of drug legalization proponents, exposing the realities of what drug legalization would mean in America, and presenting an approach to cutting drug use and its consequences. 1999
PREX 26.2:D 47

The Brain and the Actions of Cocaine, Opiates, and Marijuana

On this website view a highly technical online teaching packet (includes graphics) for use in explaining both the effects of drugs on brain chemistry and the science of addiction. 1998

Needle Exchange, Legalization, and the Failure of the Swiss Heroin Experiments

This hearing was conducted to demonstrate the failure of the Swiss Experiment, which started out as a needle-exchange program but grew into a free doctor-injected heroin program. 1997
Y 4.G74/7:N28

Pros and Cons of Drug Legalization, Decriminalization, and Harm Reduction. This hearing discusses renewed public interest in drug legalization brought on by a media campaign pushing for the legalization of medical marijuana in several states. 1999.
Y 4.G 74/7:D 84/42

Prescription for Addiction? The Arizona and California Medical Drug Use Initiatives

Views from both sides on the propositions passed by California and Arizona voters. Issues concerning fair play, campaign funding, and possible consequences are discussed in this hearing. 1996
Y 4.J89/2:S.HRG.104-874

Workshop on the Medical Utility of Marijuana.

Cannabinoid receptors were discovered in the brain in 1988 making the potential for medical use of marijuana great, especially in the areas of neuropathic pain, Multiple Sclerosis, and epilepsy. Read here the findings of the Ad Hoc Group of Experts assembled by the National Institutes of Health. 1997
http://www.nih.gov/news/medmarijuana/MedicalMarijuana.htm

National Drug Control Strategy.

Detailed government policies and objectives for the war on drugs are underscored with facts and statistics on drug use and crime. Annual
PREX 26.1/2:(year)

Speaking Out Against Drug Legalization

This manual was developed by and for DEA and FBI employees to enhance their effectiveness in the debate on the legalization of drugs. 2000/2003
J 24.2:D 84/20/2000

Legal Information

The Marihuana Tax Act

This is the Federal government's first attempt to regulate marijuana by imposing taxes for harvesting, prescribing, or possessing it. 1937
50 STAT. 551

Drug Abuse Prevention and Control

21 USC 801, et seq. This part of the United States Code includes the Schedules of Controlled Substances along with enforcement laws on distribution, registration requirements, and production quotas.

Schedules of Controlled Substances

21 CFR 1308, et seq. This section of the Code of Federal Regulations includes the Schedules of Controlled Substances along with regulations written for FDA enforcement.

Illinois Laws
Other Historical Sources
  • Decriminalization of Marihuana - Y 4.N16:95-1-7 (1977)
  • Therapeutic Uses of Marihuana and Schedule I Drugs - Y 4.N16:96-2-8 (1980)
  • Health Consequences of Marihuana Abuse: Recent Findings and the Therapeutic Uses of Marihuana and the Use of Heroin to Reduce Pain - Y 4.N16:96-2-5 (1980)
  • Legalization of Illicit Drugs: Impact and Feasibility--Part I - Y 4.N16:100-2-10 (1988)
  • Legalization of Illicit Drugs--Part II - Y 4.N16:100-2-11 (1988)
  • Legalization of Illicit Drugs: Impact and Feasibility (A Review of Recent Hearings) - Y 4.N16:101-1-2 (1989)
  • Drug Legalization--Catastrophe for Black Americans - Y 4.N16:100-2-9 (1988)

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