Drug Addiction & Drug Crimes

Drug addiction is a powerful force that causes people to commit a variety of crimes – and not just drug crimes. According to Broward criminal lawyer William Moore, many criminal acts are the result of dependence upon alcohol or drugs. In addition to drug possession or selling drugs and tracking charges, other crimes like prostitution, burglary, and robbery frequently have their roots in dependence. Some drugs are more addictive than others. For example, heroin and cocaine are considered to be substantially more addictive and require significantly less exposure to form an addiction than alcohol, although the powerful negative effects of alcohol abuse can be just as dire.

When a person is addicted to a substance, the need to acquire and use that substance begins to take precedence over everything else in their lives. A woman from a middle class background might drop out of school and eventually find herself engaging in street prostitution in order to support her cocaine habit. A man might take to mugging people on the street for cash or even pawning his mother’s assets in order to buy more pain pills. An experienced criminal defense attorney handles a variety of cases, including drug crimes and violent crimes, including many criminal defendants with underlying substance abuse problems.

Many drug users become desensitized to a substance after a period of time. This means that it takes more and more of the drug, or more frequent doses of the drug, in order to satisfy their cravings. Getting high twice a week might have been sufficient in the beginning, but after a period it could become every day, then multiple times per day. This degree of drug dependency seriously hampers an addict’s ability to hold down a regular job, thus fueling criminal behavior.

Some United States jurisdiction and many foreign jurisdictions have some form of drug court or program for drug rehabilitation rather than traditional penal sentencing. The rationale behind these programs is that the person himself is not bad so much as the addiction is causing himself to engage in unacceptable behaviors and that, furthermore, he is far less likely to re-offend if the root of the problem is treated. Since all American jurisdictions struggle with the issue of recidivism, Broward criminal defense attorney Moore believes that Florida should, whenever possible, send offending addicts to effective treatment in lieu of time in prison or jail. Addiction has both mental and physical components and treatment programs are typically designed to target both of these issues. One great innovation in the field of drug treatment is the use of anti-addictive medications, such as methadone for opiates, like heroin. The downside is that the street availability of these drugs has resulted in some people forming addictions to the medications that were designed to wean users off of illegal drugs in the first place.

Broward criminal lawyer William Moore has experience in all kinds of criminal defense, including sex crimes and DUI. A conviction for a felony or misdemeanor can have consequences on your freedom, your employment, and your personal life. If you have been arrested or charged with a crime in the south Florida area, contact William Moore, P.A., which has offices in Fort Lauderdale-Dade, Broward, and Fort Lauderdale Counties.

This article should be used for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice nor as implied representation of any person.

Article contributed bv Mallory Shipman, Esq.