ABSTRACT
While a major contributor to mass incarceration, the War on Drugs is not the only cause of this country’s exorbitant incarceration rates. Four out of five people incarcerated in state and federal prisons and local jails are incarcerated for a non-drug offense. Many of them struggle with a related substance use disorder (SUD). Thus, decriminalizing drug possession is an effective way to marginally reduce imprisonment rates, but broader reforms aimed at diverting individuals with a SUD who commit a range of offenses away from incarceration or the justice system all together would have a greater impact. This paper explores the potential costs and benefits of more sweeping de facto decriminalization and decarceration policy reforms and articulates how the traditional justifications for punishment support them.
