Legalizing Marijuana Drug Policy Reform and Prohibition Politics

Subjects:

• Political Science » Public Policy
• Law » Criminal Law
• Political Science » State & Local Politics
• Political Science » Political Science (General)

Reviews:

• This volume is well written and documented. It comes as a breath of fresh air amid a policy issue that is so often dealt with in an emotional and irrational way--a sane counterpoint to the emotional venting of the pharmaceutical Calvinists. Highly recommended. All levels.
  —Choice February 2005
• A readable, reasonable, and well-documented history and analysis of a silly problem that richly deserves de-problemizing.
  —Future Survey December 2004
• Rudolph Gerber, a judge, presents the case in favor of marijuana legalization, at least for medical use, citing a host of research studies, which he claims have been ignored for decades. His discussion of the history of the marijuana debate through presidential administrations since Kennedy is especially enlightening....[d]ebaters on the issue of medical use will find much ammunition in this book.
  —Library Media Connection February 2005

• Endorsement From Joseph D. McNamara,
  Research Fellow, The Hoover Institution
  Stanford University: ...[S]cathing legal analysis of the folly of the United States war on pot. The author has concisely depicted the distortions, hypocrisy, and fear mongering of high ranking federal officials who have immeasurably harmed many individuals as well as the integrity of our criminal justice system.
• Endorsement From Ethan Nadelman,
  Executive Director
  Drug Policy Alliance: Rudy Gerber's not the first judge to speak out against the drug war, and he won't be the last, but he makes a very special contribution with this fine book: a critical review of the nation's disastrous marijuana prohibition policy, informed both by twenty years on the bench and the distinctive role of Arizona in the drug policy reform politics of the past decade.

Table of Contents:

• Foreword by John Sperling
• Introduction
• History of Demonizing Drugs
• Presidential Pot Policies
• Enforcement Checkerboard
• Health Effects
• Seeds of the Medical Movement
• The People's Counterattack
• The Medical Legal Conflict
• Conclusion
• Bibliography
• Index