Counseling Chapter 16 Sixteen Drug Abuse And Alcoholrelated Crimes Learning Objectives After Reading This

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CHAPTER SIXTEEN

DRUG ABUSE AND ALCOHOL-RELATED CRIMES

Learning Objectives

After reading this chapter, students will be able to:

2. Identify the elements of the crime of possession of an illegal drug with intent to deliver.

4. Explain the rationale of the Supreme Court’s holding in Gonzales v. Raich.

6. State the basis of the argument a state’s “booze it and lose it” implied consent law

violated the U.S. Constitution.

7. Identify what must be shown to prove a person was operating a motor vehicle.

Lesson Plan

Correlated to PowerPoints

I. Drug Abuse

A. The frightening drug problem

2. Destroys lives, leads to suicide, murder, and serious health problems

4. Rich and powerful drugs lords around the world

6. U.S.-Mexico border

a. Smuggling illegal drugs north

b. Illegal immigrants north

7. Heroin smuggling, which has been declining, appears to be on the rise

8. Heroin overdose deaths have also increased

5-8

9. Heroin production and use increase since 2005

10. Readily available and attractive to the poor and the young

What If Scenario

What if your friend invites you to a party and there are drugs there? She says she is just a

“weekend” user. Do you leave the party? Do you tell someone what is happening? Do you

question her about her drug use? What risks does this situation present for you?

B. Illegal drug users

2. Types of illegal drug users

3. Common forms of drug abuse include

4. Accidental drug overdoses increasing

5. National Youth Survey

6. Prescription drugs

a. Abuse of prescription drugs (mainly painkillers) has risen

markedly over the past few years.

b. Adderall has become popular on college campuses as a stimulant

used during exam and “cramming” periods.

II. Drug Laws in the United States – Assignment 1, 2, 4, 5, 6

Learning Objective 1: List the ways a person can violate the Uniform Controlled Substances

Act.

Learning Objective 2: Identify the elements of the crime of possession of an illegal drug with

intent to deliver.

Learning Objective 3: State the current status of state medical-use-of-marijuana statutes.

Learning Objective 4: Explain the rationale of the Supreme Court’s holding in Gonzales v.

Raich.

Learning Objective 5: Identify the elements that must be proved for a conviction under a state

drug-induced death statute.

9-16

Class Discussion/Activity

In an effort to substantially decrease illegal drug use, should the

government focus more on the supply side or the demand side of the

problem? Students can research the controversy over the drug war by

visiting the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy website

for one point of view and the website of the Drug Policy Alliance, a well-

funded, nonprofit organization that advocates major changes in America’s

drug policies.

A. In 1906, the federal Pure Food and Drug Act was enacted because of the concern

over heroin addiction

B. In 1914, the federal Harrison Narcotics Act was passed

C. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) now requires a firm or person who

wishes to market and sell a drug in the United States to show that:

2. The drug or medication will do what it is advertised to do

D. The Uniform Controlled Substances Act

1. Enacted by the Federal government and all states

2. Purposes of the act

3. In their uniform controlled substance acts, most states forbid and make it

criminal conduct to:

a. Manufacture or deliver a controlled substance

b. Possess with intent to manufacture or deliver a controlled

4. Five schedules of controlled substances according to their potential for

abuse, degree of accepted medical use, and relative physical danger to the

abuser

What If Scenario

What if a person carrying a backpack that he knew contained marijuana also has

methamphetamine in the backpack? Can he be convicted for the methamphetamine?

E. Types of possession of controlled substances

1. The most common criminal illegal drug charge is that of possession of a

controlled substance.

a. Possession must be proved.

b. Federal government and most states: mens rea is an important

factor in prosecution of possession crimes

c. Some states make the simple fact of possession a crime

d. Khat

e. Possession may be proved by actual possession or constructive

possession.

F. To convict of possession of an illegal drug, must the state present a “usable

amount” as evidence?

1. State courts differ regarding whether trace amounts count as possession.

2. The “knowing” element of the federal Controlled Substances Act may also

3. Usable amount required in some states.

G. Delivery of controlled substances

2. In most actual delivery cases the government presents evidence showing

3. In other delivery cases the state proves its case by producing a witness to

the illegal drug transaction.

4. In the typical criminal case of possession with intent to deliver, the state

presents evidence showing that the accused had possession of a large

amount of an illegal drug.

a. Other evidence usually includes scales, plastic bags, large amounts

of money, a pager, or a cellular phone.

b. Supreme Court requires a “rational connection” between the

evidence and the conclusion of the fact finder.

Media Tool

Medical Marijuana

http://medicalmarijuana.com/

o Medical marijuana webpage

o Discussion: What arguments does the webpage provide in

support of legalization of medical marijuana? Do you agree with

these arguments? Why/why not? What quality is the evidence

provided in support of medical marijuana legalization?

Class Discussion/Activity

Students can research organizations that advocate legalizing marijuana for

medical purposes by visiting the websites for The American Alliance for

Medical Cannabis, The Marijuana Policy Project, The National

Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), or Law

Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP). After visiting those sites,

students can formulate the reasons for making medical marijuana and the

status of the legal issues surrounding it. Does the move to allow the use of

marijuana for medical purposes count as a step towards the

decriminalization of marijuana in general? Discuss how possession of

small amounts of marijuana is charged in different ways in the U.S.

H. State-federal clash over the medical use of marijuana

2. Federal government did not originally prosecute these cases.

3. President George W. Bush directed federal prosecutor’s to pursue cases.

a. Supreme Court held there was no medical use exception in the

4. The position of the U.S. Justice Department on medical and state-legalized

recreational use of marijuana is unclear.

a. Raids followed the Raich decision.

5. In July 2010, the House of Representatives passed a bill that changed the

sentencing structure for “crack” cocaine convictions.

I. Controlled substances used in religious ceremonies

2. The Supreme Court had held that the Free Exercise Clause of the

3. The original Religious Freedom Restoration Act applied to the states as

well as the federal government, but in Boerne v. Flores, the Supreme

Court held that Congress lacked the power to make the law effective

against the states.

Class Discussion/Activity

Why have states enacted statutes that make the delivery or possession of a

simulated controlled substance a crime? Have any states not enacted such

laws?

J. Drug rip-off cases and simulated drugs

1. Some states make delivery of a “simulated controlled substance” a crime

Media Tool

Suspended TCU student indicted in death of T. Boone Pickens’ grandson

http://www.star-telegram.com/news/local/crime/article4354200.html

o News website video

o Discussion: What is the argument for holding the supplier of a

drug accountable for the user’s death? Do you agree with holding

drug suppliers accountable when the person who uses their drugs

dies? Does it matter that the user was not an “addict” or heroin

user?

Class Discussion/Activity

What is required for criminal liability of a drug-induced death? Under

what circumstances might a user find him/herself being charged with the

death of another drug user? How does strict liability factor into drug-

induced death laws?

K. Criminal liability for drug-induced deaths

1. A number of states have enacted laws that make people who illegally

manufacture, distribute, or dispense illegal drugs strictly liable for a death

L. Possession or sale of drug paraphernalia

1. State criminal codes and the federal government make the possession or

sale of drug paraphernalia a crime.

3. Drug paraphernalia charges and convictions are most often obtained when

the item or paraphernalia is seized along with drugs.

III. Alcohol-Related Crimes – Assignment 1

Learning Objective 6: State the basis of the argument a state’s “booze it and lose it” implied

consent law violated the U.S. Constitution.

Learning Objective 7: Identify what must be shown to prove a person was operating a motor

vehicle.

What If Scenario

17-19

What if you see someone leaving the bar you are at with keys to a car? He is obviously over the

legal limit for alcohol consumption while driving. You know the person as an acquaintance but

not as a friend. What should you do?

A. Alcohol is a mood-altering drug used by an estimated 95 million Americans in

some form and in varying amounts

B. If alcohol were discovered today for the first time, the FDA would be obligated

by law to forbid its over-the-counter sale without prescription

C. Addictive and toxic

D. Alcohol’s relation to crimes and deaths

2. Alcohol is the most widely abused and misused drug in America and in

many other countries.

3. Alcohol continues to be an important factor in many disorderly conduct,

battery, assault, rape, child abuse, domestic relations disputes, and

criminal damage to property cases in the United States every year.

Media Tool

MADD

http://www.madd.org/drunk-driving/

o Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) website

o Discussion: What is the purpose of the MADD organization?

What services does MADD provide? What has MADD

accomplished since its formation?

E. Drunk driving: the criminal homicide causing the most deaths

2. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates the yearly

costs of drunk driving to be $51 billion.

3. Tougher laws and enforcement, taking more blood alcohol tests of

4. All 50 states have now set the blood-alcohol content (BAC) limit for

operating a motor vehicle at .08%.

Class Discussion/Activity

What are your state’s criminal laws about Driving Under the Influence?

How is a DUI punished in your state? Misdemeanor or felony or both?

What types of programs or requirements are imposed on persons convicted

of DUI who are not incarcerated? Students should also research their

county or state adult probation agency to investigate whether it has a

special unit dedicated to DUI probationers and what that entails.

2. In most statutes the prosecution can prove the violation either by evidence

3. Prosecutors will usually have additional observed evidence of impairment,

such as the suspect’s physical condition, the smell of alcohol on the

breath, or the slurring of words.

Media Tool

Nystagmus Field Sobriety Test

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xj4mWkNvq3c

o YouTube video

o Discussion: What is nystagmus? What should you know about

this test? Check yourselves and see if anyone in class has it

naturally.

G. Field sobriety tests

1. Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus

3. Walk-and-turn

4. One-leg stand

Class Discussion/Activity

What is the purpose of “Booze It and Lose It” laws? Do you agree with

such laws? Why or why not?

2. Give the police the authority to immediately seize the driver’s license of

people who fail or refuse sobriety tests.

3. After the drinking public became aware of these laws, nighttime fatal

crashes dropped dramatically.

What If Scenario

What if you fall asleep behind the wheel of your car after drinking in a bar?

1. When no witnesses are available to testify about the driving, courts must

3. One can be “operating” a motor vehicle without driving the motor vehicle.

4. Courts have generally rejected the defense of defendants who admitted

5. For most courts, the question is: Has some action been taken to initiate the

“sequence of acts that activate” the motor vehicle?

Lecture Notes

Drug abuse is a frightening problem that should be discussed seriously with students. It is

important to recognize that some of the drugs that college students may consider “no big deal”

have the potential to cause serious harm. Discuss with students the reasons why drugs are illegal.

Today, commonly abused drugs include so-called street drugs, prescription drugs, and over-the-

counter substances. Combining any of these drugs with each other, or with alcohol, creates the

risk of stroke, seizure, coma, or even death. Drug overdoses now number about 20,000 per year

in the United States. Abuse of prescription drugs, mainly pain killers, has also risen markedly

What do students think about the decisions of some states to legalize medical marijuana and the

decisions of Colorado and Washington to legalize marijuana for recreational use? Discuss with

them the possible consequences of such laws. Do they believe that it is time for some

consistency between all 50 states and the federal government? Discuss the cases in the text and

the possible future of marijuana and its use in the United States.

An important part of this chapter is the discussion on alcohol. Many students have grown up

during a time when an alcohol related-charge is considered serious. They may not be familiar

with Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) and how the organization changed society’s

Key Terms

Uniform Controlled Substances Act – A model act identifying illegal drug crimes, drafted by a

national conference of uniform law commissioners and adopted by the states and the federal

government. (p. 460)

possession with intent to deliver – A criminal case in which the state presents evidence

showing that the accused had possession of a large amount of an illegal drug, meaning more than

the accused would personally use. (p. 464)

drug paraphernalia – Objects that are primarily intended or designed for use with illegal drugs.

(p. 469)

field sobriety tests – Field tests used to evaluate a motorist’s alcohol or drug impairment. They

include HGN testing, the walk-and-turn test, and the one-leg stand test. (p. 475)

Assignments

2. Explain how state courts differ on the amount of an illegal drug required to sustain a

conviction for possession of that drug. Which is the majority rule? [LO 2]

3. Individually or in small groups, have students research the number of alcohol-related

4. Have students break up into groups and discuss the importance of each drug-fighting

5. In small groups or individually, have students read the Supreme Court opinion in Raich v.

6. Divide the class into small groups (or into two groups if the class is not large). Assign

groups to be for or against the legalization of marijuana. Have the groups debate the

issue. [LO 3]

Case Analysis and Writing Exercises

1. Is a driver suffering from “sleep driving” because of a reaction to the prescription sleep aid

Ambien guilty of DUI? If so, does the sleep driving constitute a defense under the DUI statute?

Do DUI statutes have a mental state requirement? See Leeka v. State, 461 S.W.3d 331 (Ark.

2015). Is the dissent right?

2. Some states have a state statute similar to the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act,

discussed in this chapter. Idaho is such a state: The Idaho Free Exercise of Religion Protection

Act (FERPA) states that government may not substantially burden the exercise of religion by

laws of general application (like criminal laws) unless there is a “compelling state interest” in

having the law. In State v. Cordingly, 302 P.3d 730 (Idaho App. 2013) the court found that the

state’s controlled substances law “substantially burdened” defendant’s actions as a member of the

“Church of Cognitive Therapy”. Why didn’t the court reverse the defendant’s conviction? Was

he “exercising” a religion when he used controlled substances (marijuana)?

3. In every state, the penalty for possession of controlled substances with the intent to deliver (sell)

is much greater than possession for personal use. As noted in this chapter, proof of intent to

deliver is frequently done by circumstantial evidence. Is there sufficient evidence for proof of

intent if: (1) the police observe a “frantic” woman flag down defendant’s SUV, reach into the

SUV and hand something to the driver, and take something from the driver? The driver is

subsequently stopped and police find 2.5 grams of crack cocaine hidden in the ceiling of the

SUV. (2) The police search the SUV and find neither cash nor packaging, nor do they find drug

paraphernalia like a crack pipe. If this isn’t enough proof, what additional factors convinced the

4. Most states have statutes permitting the seizure and forfeiture of contraband, including money

related to the illegal sale of controlled substances. Texas has a forfeiture statute for contraband,

including cash used in drug trafficking. Was the trial court correct to order seizure of cash found

in defendant’s possession in Approximately $31,421.00 v. State, 2015 WL 7730827 (Tex. Crim.

App. 2015)? What, in your view, was the most significant fact pointing to the cash being part of