Drugs and the FBI
Posted by Moonage on 10 Oct 2005 | Tagged as: Fed Policy
I’m ambivalent towards this idea. Sure, good people do drugs too. However, the primary purpose of the FBI is drug enforcement. Sure, it’s a good idea to have people that know how the drug environment operates. But, they can be informants and the like. Sure, some people have done drugs and quit. But, raising that bar a little would do. Basically, I’m uncomfortable with the idea of allowing potential users to be involved in the primary prevention mechanism. If they’ve done it fairly regularly, they’re going to have friends and family that do now. How can they rectify that personal conflict? There are plenty of people that have never done drugs, the trick is to appeal to more of them instead of lowering the bar.
9 Comments »
on 10 Oct 2005 at 10:15 pm 1.Stormwarning
said …
Its not true that “the primary purpose of the FBI is drug enforcement.”
As for drug use and serving with the FBI, I suppose that given the times, it might make it harder to find qualified agents if anyone who admitted to doing drugs was disqualified. But I agree that lowering the bar is a bad idea…and then again…
Then again…doing drugs in the past is part of the security clearance application form. I wouldn’t want to relax the standard on that…would you?
on 10 Oct 2005 at 10:33 pm 2.Moonage
said …
Nope. I see no reason at all that they can’t find a few good people. Problem IMO is the PR beating they took from 1993-2001. The glamour’s not there any more. When they restore their image, they’ll get those good people again.
I’ll cede your experience on the primary purpose of the FBI ( in other places ). But here, they are primarily dealing with drugs.
on 11 Oct 2005 at 8:56 pm 3.Stormwarning
said …
The FBI may have taken a PR beating, but it should be remembered that the ATF and not FBI were really the bad guys, as I remember it when it came to Ruby Ridge.
Anyway, for future reference, according to the FBI website:
WHAT WE INVESTIGATE
Counterterrorism: http://www.fbi.gov/terrorinfo/counterrorism/waronterrorhome.htm
Counterintelligence: http://www.fbi.gov/hq/ci/cointell.htm
Cyber: http://www.fbi.gov/cyberinvest/cyberhome.htm
Public Corruption: http://www.fbi.gov/hq/cid/pubcorrupt/pubcorrupt.htm
Civil Rights: http://www.fbi.gov/hq/cid/civilrights/civilrts.htm
Organized Crime: http://www.fbi.gov/hq/cid/orgcrime/ocshome.htm
White Collar Crime: http://www.fbi.gov/hq.htm
Major Thefts/Violent Crime: http://www.fbi.gov/hq.htm
FBI PRIORITIES
http://www.fbi.gov/priorities/priorities.htm
1. Protect the United States from terrorist attack.
2. Protect the United States against foreign intelligence operations and espionage.
3. Protect the United States against cyber-based attacks and high-technology crimes.
4. Combat public corruption at all levels.
5. Protect civil rights.
6. Combat transnational and national criminal organizations and enterprises.
7. Combat major white-collar crime.
8. Combat significant violent crime.
9. Support federal, state, county, municipal, and international partners.
10. Upgrade technology to successfully perform the FBI’s mission.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the investigative arm of the US Department of Justice. The FBI’s investigative authority can be found in Title 28, Section 533 of the US Code. Additionally, there are other statutes, such as the Congressional Assassination, Kidnapping, and Assault Act (Title 18, US Code, Section 351), which give the FBI responsibility to investigate specific crimes.
As for drug enforcement agencies, they include the DEA and the Narcotics Enforcement Agency of ICE/DHS. My guess is that if the FBI is local and doing drug work, they’re there by either request of the locals, or because of another, related, crime.
on 12 Oct 2005 at 9:45 am 4.Moonage
said …
They’re here by request of the local Congressman.
on 12 Oct 2005 at 9:59 am 5.Stormwarning
said …
Well, then. That makes a load of sense. The leading drug of choice in this area is methamphetamines? Or the more “mundane?” Not that heroine, cocaine or oxy is mundane.
on 12 Oct 2005 at 10:22 am 6.Moonage
said …
Meth is a major issue here. The others less so. Oxy seems to have peaked a few years ago. The prosecution of several doctors prescribing it seems to have put a damper on the prevelance of it. The reason meth is so appealing here is because it is so cheap to make. However, Kentucky passed some laws with the direct intent of making meth harder to market. Hopefully it works.
on 12 Oct 2005 at 10:14 pm 7.Stormwarning
said …
Are you familiar with this?
http://www.whitehousedrugpolicy.gov/hidta/appalachia.html
Drug control policy is a longer term issue than DHS. Sometime we’ll spend time talking about it.
on 13 Oct 2005 at 8:55 am 8.Moonage
said …
I am extremely familiar with it. My wife worked with it for a time. One of my best friends was director of it for a couple of years. One of the people I respect most in my community is a lawyer with the FBI funded through the program. It is exactly what I was referring to originally.
on 13 Oct 2005 at 10:18 pm 9.Stormwarning
said …
Somehow, in all the time we’ve known each other, this never came up (?). Interesting.
I’m also quite familiar with it. My contacts with the counterdrug area emanate from the HIDTA program. My friend, to whom I’ve referred often, and who I’ve discussed with you in the past is with them, and also helped to create other narcotics related gov’t programs.
Like I said. The counterdrug area is more complicated I think than DHS.