Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA): History, Role & Purpose
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In 2011, 22 people were arrested and over $2.2 million in cash was seized in 'Operation Pill Nation'. This was an investigation that implicated more than 60 doctors and 40 'pill mills' for illegally dispensing more than 660,000 doses of Oxycodone. Who conducted this extensive operation? It was the DEA!
The Drug Enforcement Administration, or DEA, is the leading law enforcement agency responsible for preventing the distribution of illegal narcotics in the United States. The DEA is one of many federal law enforcement agencies operating under the supervision of the Department of Justice.
Specifically, the DEA enforces all federal laws pertaining to the illegal sale, distribution, manufacture or use of drugs. This includes enforcement of the Controlled Substances Act, or CSA, which is the main federal drug policy under which the manufacture, importation, possession, use and distribution of certain substances is regulated. Through the enforcement of our nation's federal anti-drug laws, the DEA investigates and precludes drug dealers, drug-distributing gangs, drug trafficking enterprises and drug manufacturers.
The DEA investigates drug operations within the U.S., and also investigates international drug operations when those operations affect or infiltrate the U.S. For example, DEA agents work closely with Border Patrol and Customs Enforcement agents in order to intercept illegal drugs being brought into the U.S.
The DEA performs many different duties through the use of various DEA programs. Some of the DEA's main programs include:
- Intelligence, which initiates investigations of major drug organizations and acquires information that leads to seizures and arrests. This unit also helps provide lawmakers with drug trend information so anti-drug laws can be kept current.
- Cannabis Eradication, which is the only nationwide law enforcement program exclusively targeting the illegal cultivation of marijuana. This unit provides resources to state and local law enforcement agencies in their efforts to curtail the illegal manufacture and distribution of marijuana. This also includes any distribution of medical marijuana that is not in compliance with applicable laws and regulations.
- Demand Reduction, which is a drug prevention program working in conjunction with local government officials, schools and treatment programs. This program focuses on educating the public regarding the dangers of drug use.
- Diversion Control, which is responsible for stopping the diversion of controlled substances, including drugs and chemicals. Diversion means converting drugs from legal and medically necessary uses to uses that are illegal or not medically authorized.
- Foreign Cooperative Investigations, which is the unit responsible for cooperating with foreign law enforcement agencies in an effort to stop international drug traffickers. This unit communicates with anti-drug law enforcement agencies from several other countries in order to share drug-related intelligence.
- Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces, which conduct large scale attacks on major drug-trafficking and money-laundering organizations. This unit works closely with other law enforcement agencies, such as the FBI, Customs Enforcement and the ATF.
- Southwest Border Initiative, which is a newer unit formed to combat Mexico-based drug-trafficking groups. Like the organized crime task forces, this unit is a cooperative organization with other law enforcement agencies.
Now let's take a quick look at the history of the DEA. The DEA was formed in the early 1970s, by combining anti-drug law enforcement units from several other federal government agencies. It was formed shortly after the passage of the Controlled Substances Act, or CSA, and partially in an effort to better enforce the Act. President Nixon wanted to combine agencies as part of his all-out global war on the drug menace. This effort later became known simply as the 'War on Drugs'.
The War on Drugs is constantly changing in order to address current drug trends. In the mid-1970s, the DEA focused on Mexico and the production of heroin. They even used State Department helicopters to destroy poppy fields in Mexico since heroin is made from opium poppies.
By the early 1980s, the DEA was focused on South Florida due to violent cocaine traffickers from Latin America. Cocaine was in fairly heavy demand at that time, with approximately 22 million Americans admitting to having used cocaine.
During President Reagan's administration, First Lady Nancy Reagan introduced the 'Just Say No' campaign to help ease drug demand. By 1986, the War on Drugs escalated with President Reagan authorizing military advisors to work with federal and local law enforcement.
However, during this same time, a cheap alternative to cocaine was introduced. Crack cocaine became readily available and because it is highly addictive, quickly became a pressing social issue. Crack cocaine is made from cocaine, so the DEA continued its efforts to curb cocaine trafficking by targeting Colombian drug cartels.
By the late 1990s, the DEA's efforts focused more on the manufacture of methamphetamine and synthetic drugs like Ecstasy. While methamphetamine was 'cooked' domestically in home labs, millions of Ecstasy pills were smuggled into the U.S. each week.
More recently, the DEA has shifted some focus to the illegal use of prescription drugs, such as Valium and Oxycontin. The DEA also investigates the illegal use of performance-enhancing drugs. For instance, the DEA conducted the raid on the laboratory that led to the baseball steroid scandal involving Barry Bonds.
Let's review:
The Drug Enforcement Administration, or DEA, is the leading law enforcement agency responsible for preventing the distribution of illegal narcotics in the United States. The DEA operates under the supervision of the Department of Justice. It was formed in the early 1970s by combining anti-drug law enforcement units from several other federal government agencies. The DEA is the main player in the War on Drugs, though its focus changes in order to address current drug trends.
The DEA enforces all federal laws pertaining to the illegal sale, distribution, manufacture or use of illicit drugs. This includes enforcement of the Controlled Substances Act, or CSA, which is the main federal drug policy under which the manufacture, importation, possession, use and distribution of certain substances is regulated.
The DEA performs many different duties through the use of various DEA programs, such as:
- Intelligence, which initiates investigations of major drug organizations and acquires information that leads to seizures and arrests.
- Cannabis Eradication, which is the only nationwide law enforcement program exclusively targeting the illegal cultivation of marijuana.
- Demand Reduction, which is a drug prevention program working in conjunction with local government officials, schools and treatment programs.
- Diversion Control, which is responsible for stopping the diversion of controlled substances, including drugs and chemicals. Note that diversion means converting drugs from legal and medically necessary uses to uses that are illegal or not medically authorized.
- Foreign Cooperative Investigations, which is the unit responsible for cooperating with foreign law enforcement agencies in an effort to stop international drug traffickers.
- Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces, which conduct large scale attacks on major drug-trafficking and money-laundering organizations.
- Southwest Border Initiative, which is a newer unit formed to combat Mexico-based drug trafficking groups.
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