1 1 2 3 4 5 DRUG ENFORCEMENT ADMINISTRATION 6 NATIONAL HEROIN CONFERENCE 7 8 9 10 Keynote Address by 11 Attorney General Janet Reno 12 13 14 15 Wednesday, February 5, 1997 16 12:30 p.m. 17 18 19 20 21 22 2 1 P R O C E E D I N G S 2 MR. CONSTANTINO: The Attorney 3 General has adjusted her schedule in that the 4 difficulty yesterday in the office, they lost 5 one of their employees, which was a fairly 6 young woman who had a heart attack and was 7 close to the Attorney, which, I think, has 8 obviously placed a strain on the schedule in 9 dealing with the families and wakes and all 10 that. It's always dangerous, I think, to 11 introduce your own boss. 12 (Laughter) 13 MR. CONSTANTINO: If you don't do it 14 right you will feel uncomfortable. If you're 15 too flattering, it looks like a self-serving 16 introduction. 17 (Laughter) 18 MR. CONSTANTINO: Given the two 19 choices I allot for the latter. 20 (Laughter) 21 MR. CONSTANTINO: But what I say 22 comes from the heart, I've said it before. If 3 1 there's a person with class and integrity and 2 character that I know of, it is the Attorney 3 General of the United States. 4 I've watched her again and again in 5 very difficult circumstances where it will be 6 easy for her to say something that wouldn't be 7 correct or warrant decision-making. And in 8 each and every one of those occasions I have 9 been impressed by her courage, and always 10 wondered whether or not, if I was placed in the 11 same circumstances, I would have had the same 12 reaction which she's had the strength to have. 13 For those of you who work in law 14 enforcement, it's really -- especially the 15 state and local government -- you should know 16 that virtually every two weeks both myself and 17 a senior member of my staff meet with the 18 Attorney General as does the record (inaudible) 19 and alternating case. 20 At probably, at least 80 percent of 21 those meetings, an issue is arrived at whereas 22 the Attorney General has been off in the United 4 1 States and has seen something that she is 2 impressed with or concerned about and wants to 3 find some way that she can bring a reaction on 4 the part of the Justice Department and, in our 5 case, specifically the DEA. 6 The other thing I'll tell you that we 7 couldn't do any of these things, hold any of 8 these conferences or run any of the enforcement 9 programs if it wasn't for budget support. And 10 all of you know that, who work in law 11 enforcement. She has been a tiger in fighting 12 for all of the budget enhancements that have 13 been essential to DEA. 14 So we're really beyond the 15 (inaudible) to just carry out a lot of those 16 philosophical, practical judgments that are set 17 for us. And with that I hope I have found the 18 right balance between the two, and, Attorney 19 General, it's now up to you. 20 (Applause) 21 ATTORNEY GENERAL RENO: Thank you, 22 Tom. 5 1 I just appreciate what you do day in 2 and day out. And what all of you do. I have 3 just -- as I came I recognized faces that I 4 have gotten to know and others that I've known 5 for a long time, and I just appreciate your 6 efforts on behalf of the American people. And 7 I want you to know that. 8 For this conference Tom has brought 9 together representatives of federal, state and 10 local law enforcement, prosecutorial demand 11 reduction agencies and members of 12 nongovernmental organizations, to respond with 13 a threat facing our communities by the growing 14 supply and consumption of heroin. 15 Prosecutors aren't going to win this 16 battle by themselves. DEA isn't going to win 17 the battle by itself. The local police 18 department is not going to win. The only way 19 you're going to do this is by coming together, 20 not just in conferences such as this, but in 21 our daily operations, unconcerned about perks, 22 unconcerned about credit, but one common goal 6 1 that is, the best way to stem the growth of 2 this problem in this country. And I want to do 3 everything I can to be a partner with you in 4 that effort. 5 Recent trends in heroin's 6 availability, purity and price clearly indicate 7 that this is one of the most critical problems 8 we face in fighting narcotics in this country 9 today. 10 Worldwide production of heroin has 11 increased drastically. It is more plentiful on 12 our streets. It's, on average, five to six 13 times more pure than a decade ago. And it's 14 less expensive. 15 A formula that has increased heroin 16 addiction for our country by 20 percent and 17 brought about the usual parade of terrible 18 results: Violence, theft, despair, neglect and 19 abuse of our children. And now, more 20 frequently then ever before, death. 21 Now is the time to act, to develop a 22 comprehensive plan to this nation. It is time 7 1 to develop enforcement and prevention 2 strategies together before we have this demon 3 totally out of control. 4 Historically, heroin use and abuse 5 has been consigned to the margins of our 6 society. Even in the 1960's, when large parts 7 of mainstream America experimented with drugs, 8 heroin was generally feared and refused to 9 carry the stigma which set it apart from other 10 drugs. 11 Since then a stable addict population 12 of about half a million people grew older, and 13 through few new recruits, heroin consumption 14 remained relatively constant throughout the 70s 15 and the 80s because of lower availability, 16 poorer quality and higher street prices, caused 17 in large part by law enforcement pressure and 18 then by the emergence of crack and cocaine. 19 The predominate trend in America 20 since the excesses of the 60's and the 70's has 21 been an overall decrease in drug use. Today an 22 estimated six percent of Americans have used 8 1 illicit drugs within the last month. Less than 2 half of the 14 percent in 1979. 3 But heroin has not followed that 4 trend. It is now being supplied in greater 5 quantity, higher purity; it's being purchased 6 by a growing number of users and addicts. 7 Within the last few years the number of addicts 8 has increased from 500,000 people in the 1970's 9 and 1980's to approximately 600,000 heroin 10 addicts today. 11 For more and more drug users it is 12 replacing crack and cocaine as the drug of 13 choice. And for others it is being used in 14 conjunction with those drugs to enhance their 15 highs and to relieve their aftereffects. 16 The expanding number of users in the 17 United States has been propelled in large part 18 by an increase in the purity of heroin sold on 19 our streets. A trend which not only reflects 20 heroin's increased availability, but it has 21 broadened its allure and potential users. 22 Expanded availability of heroin 9 1 worldwide and the competition for greater 2 market share among producers and distributors 3 has reduced the need for heroin dealers to 4 dilute their product to satisfy the market 5 demand. 6 Ten years ago heroin street level 7 purity averaged 7 percent. But since 1988 it 8 has increased more than five-fold to an average 9 purity of between 35 and 40 percent. 10 Higher purity heroin has enabled 11 users to administer the drug through 12 alternatives to injection, like inhaling or 13 snorting, which are less efficient methods and 14 capable of producing substantial euphoric 15 effects at lower purity levels. 16 The availability of snorting has 17 attracted many new users, especially in the 18 Northeast, where street purities regularly top 19 50 percent are highly conducive to this method. 20 Snorting not only circumvents the 21 stigma traditionally associated with needles, 22 and eliminates the direct risk of contracting 10 1 AIDS and other communicable diseases in 2 contaminated syringes, but it also fosters the 3 mistaken view held by some that it is less 4 addicting than injection. 5 Indeed, snorting heroin is as 6 addicting as injection, and may just as likely 7 result in that fatal overdose. 8 Snorting heroin is also unlikely to 9 the lesson the drugs practiced consequences. 10 Many addicts will continue to contract AIDS 11 from prostitution, which the history of the 12 crack epidemic teaches us, is a common method 13 to finance a drug habit. 14 And many users will more likely 15 return to more efficient methods, like an 16 injection, to boost their drug-induced stupors. 17 As a result of increased street-level purities 18 and the rising popularity of snorting, heroin 19 consumption has become more widespread in 20 mainstream society. 21 More and more of middle class and 22 working class teenagers, young adults in 11 1 suburban residences with otherwise bright 2 futures, are joining the older, long-term users 3 who have more recently (inaudible) the addict 4 population. 5 Unless we do something now, we can 6 expect this trend and it's consequences to 7 continue and to become one of the most critical 8 crises we face in the area of narcotics 9 enforcement. 10 If we do not counteract the heroin 11 threat now, we risk repeating the terrible 12 consequences of the 1980's cocaine and crack 13 epidemic. 14 I remember as it started to become 15 epidemic, I just wish that in those days in the 16 80's we had the opportunity to come together to 17 find out what was happening in communities 18 across the nation, to share intelligence and to 19 develop a comprehensive plan, that together, we 20 can spend this time before it becomes 21 ingrained. 22 Heroin and other illegal drugs exact 12 1 a tremendous toll on society, both financially 2 and morally. The economic costs alone are 3 absolutely staggering. We spend billions of 4 dollars annually to combat drug-related crime, 5 to cure the illnesses related to drug abuse and 6 to compensate for productivity losses in our 7 workplace. 8 But the other costs, the ones that 9 stir our sense of true moral outrage, are the 10 human costs. Childhood essence lost in 11 drive-by shootings. Infants who are addicted 12 to drugs. School children of course place a 13 higher premium on survival then on education, 14 and their decadence and their misery are 15 engulfing larger and larger segments of our 16 population. 17 The increase in heroin use and purity 18 has also spawned a substantial increase in the 19 number of users seen in hospital emergency 20 rooms. The Drug Abuse Warning Network, which 21 helps people treated for drug-related problems 22 and hospital emergency departments, estimates 13 1 that 76,000 people sought emergency treatment 2 for heroin-related problems in 1995, more than 3 double the estimated 34,000 in 1990. Heroin 4 overdoses bring a tragic end to nearly 4,000 5 lives each year. 6 AIDS, the prevalent disease among the 7 injection users and drug addicts who finance 8 their habit through prostitution, has become a 9 common and especially anguishing cause of death 10 among heroin addicts and users. 11 At times it seems that society's 12 awareness of these costs and the dangers of 13 illicit drug use has decreased. A disturbing 14 number of heroin-related deaths and arrests 15 have occurred among the prominent entertainers, 16 underscoring an image problem among those who 17 young people often seek to emulate. 18 I congratulate those members in the 19 entertainment industry who are addressing these 20 problems, and I commend their efforts to fight 21 drugs and violence in this country. 22 Unfortunately, heroin's allure has 14 1 broadened at the same time that the drug's 2 presence in cult culture has risen. Many of 3 those who are best positioned in our society to 4 influence young people's attitudes have been 5 sending the wrong message, or no message at 6 all. 7 The recent rash of talented young 8 lives snuffed by heroin, and prominent people 9 arrested for heroin use, suggest the drug may 10 have acquired a dangerous new cache in some 11 entertainment circles. 12 A tacit acceptance of heroin is 13 reflected not only by the prominent users' 14 actions and the pervasiveness of drug entry in 15 film, fashion and music, but by the apparent 16 willingness of some of the entertainment 17 industry to condone rather than to condemn its 18 use. 19 Those from the industry who have 20 joined us this week are representative of so 21 many in the field who know that substantial 22 progress in curtailing America's drug problem 15 1 will not come about unless people under 20, who 2 are more likely than any other age group to 3 begin using drugs and are more susceptible to 4 messages in the meaning from the celebrities, 5 receive a clear and unequivocal message from 6 all corners that heroin usage is dangerous and 7 it is wrong. 8 The recent spate of deaths and 9 arrests undermines this message, making it 10 harder for children to say no when so many 11 influential role models say yes. 12 An unequivocal message from 13 Government and private industry on the perils 14 of the illegal drugs is especially important 15 now that heroin is in the position to become 16 our next major epidemic. 17 Demand reduction through education 18 and treatment is crucial to keeping people off 19 drugs in the first place, and to breaking the 20 cycle of crime and addiction among drug users. 21 But such a limited strategy, without 22 strong law enforcement, will not deter the 16 1 hardcore users and the traffickers who stand 2 ready to exploit any demand, especially now 3 that the enormous global heroin supply has the 4 potential to overwhelm current treatment and 5 prevention efforts. 6 In this respect, a strong law 7 enforcement establishment encompassing federal, 8 state and local jurisdictions, and a link to an 9 efficient, effective intelligence-gathering 10 apparatus is essential. 11 The recent trend in heroin's 12 availability, purity and consumption point to 13 the urgency of our tasks. Without an effective 14 nationwide enforcement strategy, we will be 15 overcome by trafficking organizations that are 16 more sophisticated and more elusive than ever 17 before. They are poised to exploit every crack 18 and fissure in our enforcement system, and we 19 must be prepared to respond. 20 The effect of such a strategy must 21 take into account several features of the 22 heroin crave that presents unique obstacles to 17 1 law enforcement. Unlike cocaine and other use 2 of drugs, the bulk of the world's heroin supply 3 is produced in countries that are particularly 4 immune to the United States' influence, 5 particularly Burma and Afghanistan, making 6 cooperation to source countries difficult. 7 Moreover, since a relatively small 8 percentage of the total worldwide heroin supply 9 is actually consumed in the United States, 10 large seizures in this country are likely to 11 have a relatively smaller effect on the 12 worldwide heroin market then a similar seizure 13 of cocaine would have on the cocaine market. 14 Heroin's price structure also tends 15 to favor traffickers over law enforcement by 16 allowing drug trafficking organizations to 17 profit from the relatively -- from the 18 smuggling of relatively small quantities. 19 Although heroin and cocaine prices 20 are comfortable, on the street level, heroin 21 offers a substantially larger profit margin on 22 the wholesale level. Heroin is best being 18 1 moved in much smaller quantities than cocaine, 2 but still realizes the same financial windfall, 3 making it easier to conceal and ensuring that 4 seizures and arrests large enough to disrupt 5 the overall heroin market will be in treatment. 6 Perhaps as a result of heroin's price 7 advantage, many South American cocaine 8 trafficking organizations are now distributing 9 heroin. In the last three years, South 10 American heroin has accounted for a 11 progressively larger proportion of the 12 substance seized in this country. 13 And South American organizations, 14 with their very aggressive marketing tactics, 15 have begun to cultivate extensive heroin 16 clientele. These organizations are attracting 17 new addicts by offering reduced prices and 18 increased periods, thereby ensuring themselves 19 a significant long-term market share. 20 The upsurge in South American heroin 21 reaching our shores represents an especially 22 serious threat because of the proximity and 19 1 production potential of South American producer 2 countries and the extensive trafficking 3 resources controlled by South American 4 organizations. 5 Mexican organizations which also 6 control substantial trafficking resources 7 continue to supply large amounts of black tar 8 and brown heroin in the rest of the United 9 States. 10 In the law enforcement arena we are 11 building effective federal, state and local 12 partnerships, and multi-agency task forces, as 13 well as working to secure the cooperation of 14 source-country governments. 15 I cannot stress to you how important 16 it is that the federal agencies that I 17 represent do everything they can to be a 18 partner with those of you who are out on the 19 front line in state and local law enforcement. 20 Many of you know my background as 21 that other state prosecutor. It is so 22 important for me that you let me know about any 20 1 occasion that I can do anything that promotes, 2 that enhances, that encourages that cooperation 3 and that partnership. A two-way exchange of 4 information, not just one-way. 5 A recognition that, in some 6 instances, the case is better prosecuted in 7 state court and some instances it's better 8 prosecuted in federal court. 9 We need to do things not based on who 10 get's the credit, but who can take the most 11 effective step in stemming this surge of 12 heroin. 13 So, my telephone number is 514-2002. 14 (Laughter) 15 If there are problems, let me know. 16 Somebody said, "Well, you're too busy." I 17 think most people in this room will know that 18 I'm not too busy to get back to you to 19 follow-up to make sure that we're doing 20 everything we can to be a partner. 21 We give higher priority and more 22 resources to heroin investigations. Especially 21 1 in gateway cities like New York and Miami, 2 where a significant amount of heroin enters our 3 country. 4 We must also develop effective 5 prosecution strategies that ensure heroin 6 traffickers receive stiff penalties, that their 7 money launderers are identified and prosecuted, 8 and that they are denied the benefit of their 9 ill-gotten gains. 10 We want to reach out to other federal 11 agencies to make sure that there are no turf 12 battles. And in money laundering 13 investigations we want to be a partner, work 14 together, ensure the exchange of information, 15 follow patterns and trends that lead us to the 16 sources where we can truly take effective 17 action without regard of who gets the credit, 18 but with regard with who get's the money 19 launderer. 20 The heroin market has the 21 vulnerability to be exploited. It is the 22 exceptionally high-level superiority which has 22 1 been largely responsible, as I noted 2 previously, for the upsurge in use. 3 The last 10 years have demonstrated 4 that heroin purity is closely related to its 5 availability. As I have noted, the rise in 6 street-level purities has enabled users to 7 administer the drug through less efficient but 8 more popular alternatives. 9 And effective enforcement strategy 10 that reduces the amount of heroin reaching our 11 shores could, by forcing lower purities, have 12 the simultaneous effect of reducing both supply 13 and demand. 14 At the same time that we disrupt the 15 heroin retail enterprises, we must also devote 16 resources to education and treatment to provide 17 users and addicts the capacity and the 18 incentive to overcome their drug problem. 19 Current treatment programs can become 20 even more effective if we link them more 21 closely to the criminal justice system's unique 22 ability to coerce participation. I call it the 23 1 good old fashioned carrot-and-stick approach. 2 It makes sense and it works if we back up what 3 we've said. 4 Although our nation's drug abuse 5 problem is not as severe as it was in the 6 1970's, and during the height of the cocaine 7 and crack epidemic in the 80's, the problem is 8 still a very serious one for this nation. 9 The challenge before us is to reduce 10 the distribution and consumption of illegal 11 drugs, and to not be lured into the complacency 12 by the gains we have made in the previous 13 decades. 14 It is this latter problem, 15 complacency, that I would like to close with. 16 Despite rising budgets for counterdrug 17 agencies, our national attention seems to have 18 become diverted from the problem at hand. 19 There has been a large decrease in 20 the number of public service announcements 21 available in the last years that have dealt 22 with the dangers of illicit drugs. 24 1 Our children's disapproval of drugs 2 and knowledge of their dangerous consequences 3 have decreased through the 1990's. Indeed, 4 young people exhibit an increased fascination 5 for drug use. 6 Many people now see drug use less as 7 an abhorrent behavior than as a prominent and 8 moral part of the times. As a result, our 9 children have begun to use illegal drugs, 10 alcohol and tobacco in greater numbers in the 11 last six years. 12 We can reduce the distribution and 13 the consumption of heroin and other illicit 14 drugs if we maintain and resolve and allocate 15 our limited resources very carefully, and in a 16 comprehensive effort combining all aspects of 17 law enforcement. 18 We are a great nation with a 19 tremendous capacity for resolute action and 20 creative problem-solving. It has been so 21 impressive for me to have a chance to travel 22 across this nation and see what police 25 1 departments and sheriff's offices are doing, 2 what federal agencies are doing in working in 3 partnership with them. 4 The focus on involvement. The focus 5 on the major organization to take it out and to 6 keep it out. Law enforcement in these last 7 five years has proved we can be effective if we 8 give them the tools to do the job. 9 But law enforcement has also shown 10 that, to be effective, we must not only have 11 the tools to do the law enforcement part of it, 12 we must have the tools to do the education, 13 prevention and treatment part of it as well. 14 We cannot afford to be complacent. 15 If we let the genie out of the bottle by 16 scaling back our efforts or by ignoring the 17 problem, our country will pay an enormous 18 economic and moral cost. And it is neither a 19 benevolent genie nor an easy one to squeeze 20 back into the bottle. 21 The decline in drug abuse in the last 22 20 years demonstrates that effective 26 1 enforcement, treatment and prevention can and 2 does reduce our drug problem. 3 We will succeed here this week and in 4 the weeks and months and years to come if we 5 can raise some measure of national 6 consciousness as to the current threat posed by 7 heroin. 8 We also note that this conference 9 will contribute to the develop of a national 10 heroin strategy that can truly be effective in 11 combatting this blooming problem. 12 I am confident, based on what Tom has 13 told me of the progress of this meeting today 14 that, with your experience, your professional 15 excellence and your dedication during the 16 remainder of this conference, and as we work 17 together in the weeks and months to come, that 18 we can articulate and implement an effective 19 solution diverting in this nation our heroin 20 crisis. 21 Just let me tell once again how much 22 I admire you: The federal agencies represented 27 1 here, state and local officials, treatment 2 professionals; those who understand how 3 important it is to come together and look at 4 the problem in a common sense way and then do 5 something about it. 6 On behalf of all the people in this 7 nation I thank you so much for all that you do. 8 (Applause) 9 (End of Address) 10 * * * * * 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22