Research Library

Taking a health-based approach toward curbing the rising use of synthetic cannabinoids, which has caused dangerous and sometimes fatal side effects in extreme cases, may be a more effective policy for the City of Houston, postdoctoral fellow Katharine A. Neill writes in this report.

The author analyzes the major claims and implications of the Surgeon General's report "Facing Addiction in America," and proposes additional drug policy considerations for addressing substance use disorders.

The United States has a unique opportunity to reduce the spread of disease by engaging the leaders of the G20 countries and targeting neglected diseases. Fellow Peter Hotez explains how.

There is broad consensus in the medical and scientific community that substance abuse should be treated as a medical and public health problem, not a crime. The authors recommend a sensible pivot from failed policies of drug prohibition toward a realistic approach to drug use.

Criminal extortion is on the rise in Mexico, particularly along the northern border states. Author Gary Hale shows how this trend has fueled government corruption, with officials implicitly or explicitly aiding organized crime groups as they extort businesses and citizens.

Understood in its regional context, Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs appears to be a continuation rather than a departure from Southeast Asian drug policy.

This blog post examines a Mexican senator's push to amend Mexico's Constitution to emulate the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and allow Mexico's citizens to carry handguns for personal protection.

Using charts, figures and graphs of this survey data originally created by former career intelligence analyst Brian C. Bennett and updated by the Drug Policy Program, this issue brief offers an overview of drug use trends in America over the last four decades. The brief is part of a larger online project chronicling the pattern of the use and abuse of individual drugs over (in most cases) more than 40 years.

This issue brief examines the challenges of assigning military duties to Mexico's military and argues the need for a new law to govern the country's safety and security.

Katharine Neill, the Alfred C. Glassell, III Postdoctoral Fellow in Drug Policy, explains what you should know about the Justice Department's plan to release 6,000 nonviolent drug offenders from federal prison during four days in October and November.