Should we put people who use heroin in prison？?

Question

My husband and I were arguing about should we put people who use heroin in prison. He said we shouldn’t and we should let them do whatever they want with their own body because putting prison didn’t stop people from doing drugs like heroin. And alcohol and tobacco have the similar impact on human health why people who consume them won't be put in jail. I’d love to hear what you guys think about this? Personally, I think they should, but I cannot find a good example to support my argument. I can really use some help. His Basic Argument: we should not imprison people for actions that do not have a fairly direct, tangible effect on others.

Answer 1

I am not sure its a good idea. To put people who may have never harmed anyone else in a system where they will be taught to harm people as a way of life makes no sense. Literally just shove an peaceloving guy whos got a problem into an academy of violence is surely one step forward two steps back. A seperate facility specially desined for the treatment of addicts is much more suitable. It will keep them from violent offenders and treat the addiction at the same time, more of a rehabilitation unit than a prison. It will also prevent any of the injustices so prevalent in any prison from happening to non violent people that will potentially turn them into a violent one.



I don't think its a popular idea in the USA's elite because your prison system is a slave chain, prison industrial complex producing huge amounts of cash. Why would the rich want to stop crime when they can incarcerate and force prisoners to work for nothing ?



Another reason poeple get addicted is because they live in a bubble of abuse caused by an extremely traumatic event in their past like rape, child abuse and the likes. They literally can not escape ths bubble and so turn to drugs and alcohol to let them escape, it creates a vicious cycle and so, do these people not deserve sympathy, I think they do and they certainly don't deserve being left to the dogs in a prison.



Plus you have such a opportunity for a miscarriage of justice or getting the wrong guy. The police in the usa have been caught entrapping people for drug dealing. They send a undercover cop into a school and he walks round pressurising people into getting drugs for him, how is that right ?



Plus A everday user is so much more likely to get caught and imprisoned where as dealers are normally sophisticated in their approach to avoiding the law and getting away with it. If somehow you could directly hit the source of the drug it would be much better for society as a whole. Heroin originates in afghan/pakistan, cocaine/crack/amphetamine/crystal in south america with some of the precursor material comes in from asia specifically china. With the exclusion of asia you know how messed up these regions are and so much of it comes from the drugs trade or the golden triangle as its known officially. Deal with the weed at the root.

Answer 2

No. F*ck that. It isn't helping anyone!



I'm COMPLETELY on your husband's side on this one. And just the fact that you can't find any arguments that support your position, and yet you still cling to it, shows just how much society has warped your mind in terms of this. It f*cking scares the ever-living cr@p out of me, just how successful society's war on (SOME people who use SOME) drugs, (that they don't like), has been.



By all means, lock heroin addicts up if they start stealing sh*t from others in order to finance their addiction. Because in that case, they actually ARE actively hurting people. But if they just have an addiction problem..? Then what they really need is to be taken seriously, and get offered treatment. That's the only way to help them turn their lives around! Same goes for alcoholics, who suffer from EXACTLY the same problem, just that they're addicted to a different, socially accepted drug. And you would not want to lock THEM up unless they hurt somebody, would you..? I call hypocrisy.



*Insert loud sigh here.*

Answer 3

I'm having some trouble justifying putting ANYONE in prison for using substances, legal or illegal. Prison is a college for criminals. Prison does NOT have any rehab programs. Only some pseudo-religious programs that violent criminals manipulate to get out. Nothing to help an addict. Most drug users are NOT addicted. Most addicts are functioning at some level.



The only ones that gain from our policy of jailing users, are the police, and the privatized prison systems.



We lost the "War on Drugs" Not one kid, has been prevented from trying anything he/she wanted. No one has been prevented from being addicted. It's a failed and destructive system.

Answer 4

They already do put heroin addicts in prison. The American jails are over-filled with non-violent drug offenders. So you don't really have to argue with him, you already won.

Answer 5

I agree with your husband.

Answer 6

I used to date a girl who said that she had used heroin in the past (not while we were dating). To me, it sounded like she was really depressed (and attempted suicide). She also said that the drug made her euphoric and felt very good while using it, but would not go back to that kind of life.

Mind you, she is one of the most intelligent, nicest and considerate people I've ever met. In fact, I would say that her previous experiences made her one of the most resilient woman I've ever seen. She works two jobs in a psychiatry lab, a bachelors degree from a top university, and is applying to medical school. So in her experience, people DO get off of it, though not 100% cleanly (most drug addicts will replace those harder drugs with 3 things: exercise, smoking and lots of sex [they give the brain a similar stimulation that heroin once gave them]. But in my opinion, probably better than depending on heroin).



My answer is no, we should not put people in prison for using heroin. My answer would be to help them get off the drug. Even if it is tough, punishing them would not help them get better. In fact, there are studies that show that punishing drug users would make them worse off and going cold turkey will make them have terrible withdrawals.



My argument is more pathos.

Now, let's consider that this girl I met was NOT resilient and motivated to be a "model citizen". Should we still put her in prison? After all, she is contributing to the illicit drug trade buy purchasing these substances. And under the influence, can attempt harm unto oneself (suicide). And they are knowingly doing illicit drugs and illegal activities (drug addicts tend to do more than one illegal activity). (That would be how I would argue with I were you!)

But If we put them in prison, do we expect to rehabilitate them? Or let them rot? It also depends what your values are, and what you want to do with these people if you DID put them in prison.



However, your husband's argument also states "we shouldn't imprison people....that do not have direct...effect on others"

Well in that case, smoking + 2nd hand smoking WOULD be a direct effect. Therefore, we should imprison them.

I see where your husband is going with it, but in context, drug addicts are not always low-lifes.



Anyway, I'd like to hear what ya'll think too! Great question.