A Roadmap for the U.S.: Portugal's Drug Decriminalization

A new Cato Institute report on Portugal's 2001 decision to decriminalize drugs finds compelling proof that decriminalization works - it diverts drug users from prison to treatment and it doesn't cause a spike in abuse and addiction. Lawyer and blogger Glenn Greenwald researched and wrote the report for Cato, and found that "the data show that, judged by virtually every metric, the Portuguese decriminalization framework has been a resounding success. Within this success lie self-evident lessons that should guide drug policy debates around the world."

Treating drugs as a health problem and not a crime problem (or “healthification,” as one European official calls it) has been a success in Portugal and elsewhere and Greenwald’s paper provides a clear roadmap for decriminalization in the EU and the US. He submitted the paper to several American drug policy officials, however – including the office of the drug czar – and requested a response. He got none.

Some key findings from the report:

- Portugal has seen usage stay flat, or even drop slightly, for all drug categories. Analysts chalk this up to the shift of focus and funds from penalty to treatment and the removal of stigma from drug treatment.

- Seven years after drugs were decriminalized, there is very little opposition to the policy. There is no movement to “re-criminalize” drugs.

- One interesting anecdote that I didn’t expect to read (although it makes perfect sense) is the increased willingness of some police officers to cite drug offenders now that they believe some good will come of it (rather than the cycle of court and prison). Of course, there are officers on the other side, who won’t cite drug users because they believe treatment is pointless.

- Overdose deaths and the rate of disease from shared needles have dropped significantly, now that drugs aren’t as hidden as they were.

Portugal’s success in decriminalizing drugs is admirable, but it leads me to ask – why not legalize drugs?

One main distinction between decriminalization and legalization is that trafficking is still illegal and punishable by prison time. So crime will continue, drugs will continue to be supplied by a shady underworld, and the government misses out on an opportunity to tax and regulate narcotics. Perhaps decriminalization is an experiment and a test before legalization, or perhaps it’s the only attainable reform at this time.

Decriminalization is the right direction, and the Portugal’s experience speaks volumes. Will legalization be next?

Read the executive summary of Greenwald's report here, and download the full report here (PDF).