Help with a school assignment

[MarkOfCainBand]

I'm doing a paper on drug law policies and a bit of focus on racial disparity in drug incarceration. So far things are going well, but there are a few bits of information I need.

1) Any information on how much the war on drugs is costing us, whether it's to keep people in prison/court dates/etc., lost wages for those in prison, hell if you had something on comparing the costs of prescription drugs vs. the cost if medical marijuana is available, that would be amazing. Basically anything on what the drug war costs.

Edit: I have the government estimate on the yearly cost of the drug war, I am looking for some of the more specific things mentioned. Just so you know I'm not being lazy.

2) Alternative responses to drug law violations (selling or using) instead of incarceration.

I'm still finding stuff as well, but I figure some of you great guys and gals may have had to do something similar at some point, or even just read about it from personal interest.

Thanks in advance for any help provided.

 

[OpenYourEyes]

There was a similar thread a while ago that has some good information about everything you mentioned except for the racial aspects. If you're in college, see if your school has access to ProQuest. It's a great research tool that searches the majority of scholarly journals and newspapers and would have what you are looking for.

College Research-Need some help!

 

[Boss]

We have TONS of info here. Check the facts forum and cannabis news.