Alabama Legislature bill would allow civil damages against convicted drug dealers
Rep. Blaine Galliher (R- Rainbow City) has introduced a bill in the legislature HB358 that would allow for civil action to be taken against convicted drug dealers if a death by overdose is caused from the drugs they sold. However, according to the article Galliher says....
“I'm not trying to cause any harm for doctors who prescribe drugs illegally,” Galliher said. “This is for the persons who have been convicted of selling illegal drugs.”
So, Rep. Blaine Galliher wants the doctors who are ILLEGALLY prescribing drugs that make their way onto the streets and wind up in the hands of people like this young man to not be harmed by this bill??? Perhaps Mr. Galliher has a doctor prescribing drugs for him illegally? Sure wouldn't want to mess that up.
This is a ridiculous bill. No one made the guy take the pill. He bought it of his own free will, took it of his own free will. Maybe if drugs were legal then we could better educate people who might be considering using them to the real facts and dangers. But, since they are not we will just have more people dying that could have been saved if only they'd had the right information.
Are we going to start suing alcohol producers, too, because somebody got drunk, wrecked their car or maybe died of alcohol poisoning?
This is an issue of personal responsibility. Passing this law (which will be unenforceable because no one will be able to prove who got drugs from whom) won't stop people from selling, using, manufacturing, or transporting drugs. Not to mention that if the person has already been convicted of dealing drugs the state or feds have already stolen anything of value under the asset forfeiture laws.
I wish this family would realize that the government failed to save their sons life with current prohibitionist laws and adding another prohibitionist law to the mess we already have won't help others in the least. I am sorry for their loss but this is just silly and unproductive.
Section D of this bill is really interesting...It states
(d) A law enforcement officer who acts in furtherance of an official investigation or a person who acts at the direction or in cooperation with a law enforcement officer in an official investigation is not liable under this section.
Does that mean that a narc or undercover cop who sells drugs in furtherance of an official investigation, and those drugs kill whomever they were sold to, would not be liable for that death because they were breaking the law to enforce the law? BULLSHIT!
There is an excellent discussion of the bill happening here. Join in...
3 comments:
As you say, it's unlikely any convicted drug dealer would have assets to go after. So, it seems a waste of time to promote such a law.
This is very semi-related but thought you would like to read it:
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2010/1/24/829693/-Medical-Marijuana-CAN-kill-you...-if-you-need-an-organ-transplant
Like people with a drug problem dont have enough shit to deal with already. cops shaking them down and arresting them then telling them as they are about to spend the next 7 days puking their guts out & shiting themselves while detoxing in a cage that hope fully you will get the help you need now that I arrested you .Yea just the help they need. Risking death from heart failure while going cold turkey and then if you survive that you get to spend the rest of your life working jobs a migrant worker would not take due to a felony conviction.and now you will get to have those BS wages garnished to pay off a law suit because some douche bag wants to look good in the Brainwashed publics eye. Yea thats the kinda help I want. Addicts only get better when they realize they need to address the issues that cuased them to use in the first place. And it usualy takes years before they do so.If the police and courts where serious about doing something about the drug problem in alabama then they would suggest REAL drug treatment while in jail like methadone programs Narcotics anon. meeting's and health screenings to make sure that the people with drug problem's have not become infected with hep c which is soaring past the amount of HIV positive people now.There is hope for people with real addictions not the pretend ones they made up in the news about cannabis user's but real addictions like the tweekers and pipe heads and dope fiends that dont get help because money is wasted putting people in treatment for cannabis but if we keep wasting time and money on stupid crap like this bill they will never get any real help . Sorry bout the rant folks but that really got to me..
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