Markets, Regulation and Drug Law Reform: Towards a Constitutive Approach

Seddon, Toby

doi:10.1177/0964663919868756

Cited by 14 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 86 publications

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“…Cannabis legalization policies seek to remedy the widely documented shortcomings of prohibitionist policies (Caulkins et al 2016, pp. 108-9) by activating regulatory instruments that cannot be effectively deployed in illegal market environments (Seddon 2020). However, the performance of these regulatory instruments takes shape through interactions with institutional dynamics pertaining to the carceral morph of the state.…”

Section: Untangling the Relationship Between The Regulatory State And The Carceral Statementioning

confidence: 99%

“…A similar bifurcating process operates with respect to the recreational cannabis industry, wherein relatively high retail prices (themselves partly driven by taxation and regulation) may end up limiting the ability of less-resourced individuals to licitly obtain cannabis (cf. Reuter & Kleiman 1986;Seddon 2020). In this state of affairs, the interactions between market dynamics, regulation, and taxation create a stratifying mechanism that hinders the capacity of the poor to benefit from legalization and instead directs them to the expansive-yet-residual domain of the carceral state, wherein the choice continues to be between illicit use and none at all.…”

Section: Legalization Reform and The Diversification Of Regulatory Strategies For Governing Cannabis Marketsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The symbiotic tensions of the regulatory–carceral state: The case of cannabis legalization

Aaronson

Rothschild-Elyassi

2021

Regulation & Governance

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Recent scholarship has emphasized the need to develop a polymorphic conceptualization of the regulatory state. This article contributes to this theory-building project by outlining a research agenda for exploring the symbiotic interactions and tensions between the regulatory and carceral morphs of the state. Using the case study of cannabis legalization reforms in the United States, we argue that the legitimation deficits of the carceral state stimulate the proliferation of new regulatory frameworks for governing social problems that were traditionally handled by the criminal justice system. We demonstrate how the polymorphic approach illuminates the ways in which the regulatory and carceral morphs of the state compete for influence over shared policy domains, but also complement and reinforce one another. Thus, rather than precipitating the demise of the carceral state, cannabis legalization reforms sustain a bifurcated governance structure perpetuating long-standing patterns of using drug law as a means for racialized social control.

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Section: Untangling the Relationship Between The Regulatory State And The Carceral Statementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Legalization Reform and The Diversification Of Regulatory Strategies For Governing Cannabis Marketsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The symbiotic tensions of the regulatory–carceral state: The case of cannabis legalization

Aaronson

Rothschild-Elyassi

2021

Regulation & Governance

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“…Viewed through the lens of regulationdefined as any activity which "steers the flow of events"several new aspects of the 1971 Act come into focus, two of which I discuss here. First, it allows us to reframe drug policy as about market regulation (Seddon, 2020b). How best can we regulate the production, manufacture, distribution, sale and consumption of (certain) psychoactive commodities?…”

Section: Regulationmentioning

confidence: 99%

From law to regulation: re-appraising the misuse of Drugs Act 1971

Seddon

2021

DAT

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Purpose The purpose of this paper is to re-appraise the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 in order to develop alternative and new ideas for drug law reform. Design/methodology/approach The approach is to analyse the Act from historical and socio-legal perspectives, drawing on the inter-disciplinary field of regulation studies. Findings The Act has its roots in radical counter-cultural reform activism in the 1960s. Its innovative legal structure has enabled a diverse range of policy approaches to be possible over the last 50 years. Future drug law reform efforts need to broaden out from a narrow focus on law and also to engage more seriously with the politics of drug law and policy. Originality/value Drawing on the inter-disciplinary field of regulation studies leads to novel insights about the politics and practice of drug law reform.

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“…Policing practices in relation to DCS in Scotland are a key factor which could either facilitate engagement, through publichealth aligned practice, or act as a barrier to engagement, through enactment of the enforcement-based practices outlined above. Given strong evidence that criminalisation of personal possession is contrary to harm reduction and public health goals [27,30,[40][41][42][43], shifting practice towards a more public health-based approach holds promise for addressing the current high levels of drug related harms in Scotland, through enabling access to harm reduction services such as DCS.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Challenges for drug checking services in Scotland: a qualitative exploration of police perceptions

et al. 2022

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Background The impact of policing practices on the engagement of people who use drugs (PWUD) with harm reduction services is well evidenced. Although the police have traditionally taken an enforcement role in responding to drug use, it is increasingly clear that they can play an important part in multiagency delivery of harm reduction interventions. Despite this, there have been no studies exploring police officer perceptions of drug checking services (DCS), which provide analytical testing of client drug samples alongside harm reduction support and advice. Methods Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 10 police officers to explore the policing and legal challenges which could be encountered in the delivery of DCS in Scotland. Results Participants expressed general support for DCS and described this support as part of a wider organisational shift towards public health-oriented policing. Participants also discussed different potential approaches to the policing of areas surrounding DCS including: formal limits on police presence around the service and/or stop and search powers in relation to personal possession; the effective decriminalisation of personal possession within a specified boundary around the service; and informal agreements between local divisions and DCS outlining expected policing practices. Any formal limitation on the capacity of police officers to respond to community concerns was viewed as problematic and as having the potential to erode public confidence in policing. Participants also highlighted the potential for frontline officers to utilise discretion in ways which could undermine public health goals. Legislative change, or national strategic guidance from relevant stakeholders, was seen as a means of providing ‘cover’, enabling local divisions to support the operation of drug checking. Conclusions Despite a small sample of participants, this study summarises key challenges to be addressed in the implementation and operation of DCS in Scotland, and more widely. The paper concludes with suggested opportunities to develop approaches to policing that can facilitate rather than impede implementation and operation of these services.

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Markets, Regulation and Drug Law Reform: Towards a Constitutive Approach

Cited by 14 publications

References 86 publications

The symbiotic tensions of the regulatory–carceral state: The case of cannabis legalization

The symbiotic tensions of the regulatory–carceral state: The case of cannabis legalization

From law to regulation: re-appraising the misuse of Drugs Act 1971

Challenges for drug checking services in Scotland: a qualitative exploration of police perceptions

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