Good morning, Mr. Chairman, Senator Leahy, and Members of the Committee. And thank you, Chairman Hatch, for that kind introduction. I have the honor of being the United States Attorney for the District of Utah, and I greatly appreciate the opportunity to testify before the Committee on the subject of prevention, education, and treatment in the area of drug abuse. My comments will be from a prosecutor’s prospective who has been dedicated to enforcing the nation’s drug laws. At the outset I believe it is important to note that I am a prosecutor, not a social worker. I am also not a physician or a professional educator. These are not my areas of expertise, and I claim none as such. Nevertheless, I have been a prosecutor for a quarter of a century, working in the military, state, and federal systems. I believe I do have a solid background in dealing with our nation’s drug problem from a criminal enforcement perspective.

I believe it is both fair and safe to say that we will never prosecute our nation’s drug problem out of existence. We have tried to do that since the 1960's, and we have yet to succeed. Yet, I hasten to add that vigorous and aggressive criminal prosecution of illegal drug activity in our country should continue to remain as a cornerstone of our national drug control strategy and policy. Legalization of drugs simply is not the answer and sends the wrong message. Nevertheless, my experience suggests that a multi- disciplinary approach to our nation’s drug problem holds the greatest hope for success. This would include active and coordinated programs of prevention, education, treatment, rehabilitation, and criminal enforcement. While prevention, education, and treatment programs may be the carrot, criminal enforcement remains the stick.

I believe both the carrot and the stick are necessary for an effective drug reduction program. This is the principle behind a very successful state drug court program that is operating in Salt Lake City. Drug addicted individuals are given the opportunity of participating in education and treatment programs, but they know that if they fail to successfully participate and complete such programs, the hammer of the criminal law sanction is hanging over their heads. The reality is that such an approach is often necessary to keep addicted people away from drugs long enough for them to overcome their problems.

Sadly, we regularly see repeat drug offenders in the criminal justice system. Mere incapacitation through incarceration only temporarily solves the problem. Recidivism rates are extremely high upon release from prison. Drug addicted individuals often quickly return to drug use and find themselves back in the revolving door of the criminal justice system. Treatment and rehabilitation programs could significantly help in breaking this tragic cycle of drug abuse. At the same time, I must caution that there are those in our country who are simply looking at the drug trade as a lucrative business. They sell their misery with no thought save it be for huge profits. For those individuals, lengthy prison sentences still make good sense.

Please keep in mind that most criminal investigative and prosecutive resources in our nation go to the supply side of our country’s drug problem. We are going after those who produce, provide, and traffic in illegal drugs, for which there is seemingly an unending demand. Prevention, education, and treatment programs would go a long way towards reducing the demand for these illegal drugs. If we are going to effectively fight the drug problem in our nation, it is my belief that both supply and demand must be attacked.

Many of us in the criminal justice system who have been around for a while have received letters and calls from people we have prosecuted for drug offenses. They write to thank us for putting them in prison. That may sound almost unbelievable. But they tell us that they probably would have been dead because of their drug abuse, but for the treatment and rehabilitation programs they received while in prison. Unfortunately, there are far too few of these quality programs to go around. Therefore, not everyone who goes to prison for drug related crimes gets the help they need, and they become part of the revolving door cycle I previously described. How much better and cheaper it would be to have quality education and prevention programs in our schools and elsewhere, hopefully stopping the problem before it ever gets started. Likewise, more treatment options need to be provided to those already addicted.

In conclusion, Mr. Chairman, I have unfortunately seen too many lives ruined by the scourge of illegal drugs. Many of these people could have greatly benefitted from appropriate prevention, education, and treatment programs. It is my strong belief that integrating these programs into our national drug control strategy, while maintaining a vigilant and aggressive prosecution component, provides us with our greatest opportunity of success in fighting our nation’s drug problems.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I would be pleased to answer any questions from the Committee at this time.