The Casualties of the War on Drugs

“Get tough on drugs.” This has been a promise from every politician who has run for elected office over the last 30 years. Yet even with lawmakers and other elected officials waging an all out war on drugs, the use and possession of drugs is at an all time high. Statistics show that drug use is rising, and this is especially true of marijuana and illegal use of prescription drugs. One of the outcomes of the war on drugs is that those who are found in possession of a few pills or a small amount of marijuana are charged with a drug crime while the cartels still deal in massive amounts of drugs seemingly without repercussions. In Austin, there are criminal lawyers who understand that casual users should not be among the casualties of the war on drugs. Furthermore, these Austin criminal defense lawyers are aware that often those who are charged with a drug crime are themselves the victims of an unlawful search or seizure. What many legislators and law enforcement officials have forgotten is that in the war on drugs, it is not the one who is in possession that is the enemy, but the drugs. Consequently, many of those officials have also forgotten that even those that they suspect of a drug crime have constitutionally-guaranteed rights and liberties that cannot be violated, even when waging an all out war. Those charged with a drug crime are often not aware of the rights that they have. Even those who would normally be aware may be so frightened or overwhelmed by the arrest and subsequent charge that they become confused as to what their rights actually are. And, tragically, law enforcement officials are not likely to help them remember. The only way that many who are charged with a drug crime in Austin can know if their rights have been violated is with the help of Austin drug crime lawyers who care about justice being served. Experienced criminal lawyers have the expertise to know if a search or seizure was illegal. Even if the one arrested truly was in possession of a drug, lawyers can help them to know what sorts of questions are the ones they have a legal right not to answer. Even in wartime, there are certain rights that our country guarantees to every individual. When those rights are violated, there are Austin drug crime lawyers who will come to the defense of the victim so that the greatest law of the land, the U.S. Constitution, can be upheld. While it is true that politicians have declared an all out war on drugs in Austin and throughout the state of Texas, it is equally true that the legal rights of citizens should not be among the casualties of that war.