DRUG CRIME
We have previously discussed how drugs are abused, their psychological, physical and sociological impact and society’s efforts at controlling drugs. This discussion question will focus on how the drugs are made available to the user. Most illicit drugs are made available to the user through a complex chain of events that begins with cultivation (organic drugs like cocaine) or manufacturing (synthetic drugs like methamphetamine), importation into the United States (if not domestically produced), wholesale distribution and eventually, retail (street level) sales. The sale of these drugs to the user is the ultimate objective of the entire process because this is where the profits originate. It is important to understand how drug trafficking organizations operate, especially in the critically important point where the drugs leave the trafficking organization and enter the realm of the user.
For this discussion question, please address the following:
There are two basic street distribution models: freelance and business. Describe both the freelance model and business model of drug distribution.
Consider the typical relationship between street level dealer and drug user. The drug user (consumer) and the drug dealer (retail sales person) engage in a mutually consensual transaction where the user receives a commodity (illicit drug) in exchange for an accepted payment (cash, property, etc). If we were to disregard the facts that the commodity has been deemed contraband and illegal by the government and consumption of the product has been deemed physically and socially destructive to the buyer, this is simply a business transaction no different than buying a Snow Cone from an ice cream man. If a drug deal occurs between two mutually consenting adults, how does this hurt anyone other than those individuals who want to engage in this activity?
