Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1956-05-28
Stiffer Drug Laws
Endorsed at Hearinq
u. S. and District
Aides Back Bill
At Senate Inquiry
BY MIRIAM GUTENBERG

Federal and District officials
today gave strong backing to
proposed legislation to plug loop
holes in the Districts narcotics
laws and to get the addicts of
the streets.
Senator Morse, Democrat Of
Oregon, who heads the Senate
District Judiciary Subcommittee.
said after hearing the witnesses
that the detectives of the bill
strike me as very sound" He
said he fully expected that the
bill would be reported to the full
committee Thursday.
The only objection voiced at
the hearing came from the
druggists in opposition to the
extent of record keeping re-
quired in the measure. Senator
Morse, however, in all his ques-
tioning. indicated he favored
sufficient record-keeping to be
able to trace the drugs from
manufacturer to ultimate sale.
Already Endorsed
Commissioner Robert E. Nc
Laughlin told Senator Morse
that although the bill had been
introduced only a week ago the
Commissioners have already
voted their full approval of the
bill.
The measure uses two devices
to get the addicts of the streets.
One is through civil commit
ment for treatment of addicts
considered susceptible to reha-
Utilization. The other provides
for their arrest as Migrants and
commitment to Jail or a mar
coticS farm.
Senator Morse, in questioning
United States Attorney Oliver
Gasch. cited different types Of
cases to determine how police
would handle various types of
addicts.
He gave as one example the
drug user who goes along for
years on what he considers a
moderate amount Of drugs. but
keeps up his professional life
and supports his family. Senator
Morse made it clear that this
drug user might ultimately be-
come social menace, but he
wanted to know if he could be
: picked up by the police during
} the period of his life when he
; was still an apparently normal
citizen.
Vagrant Type Described
: Mr.. GaSch replied that such q
: drug user would not be consid-
5 cred a vagrant but might be
Judged in need of disqualification
: and committed to a hospital.
Senator Morse then brought
up the case of an addict who
: could no longer hold a job and
/. lived by pandering or petty
: thefts. Senator Morse wanted to
) know If police could pick him up
, anywhere as a vagrant.
Mr.. Gasch said that he could
, be considered an addict-vagrant,
, Federal Narcotics Commits
, sioner Harry j. Anslinger told
the Senator that the proposed
addict-vagrant mea sure was SIM
: liar to one in New jersey which
has worked extremely we'll" AS
for the bill as a whole, he said
he thought it was a very good
measure which would be helpful
in controlling the drug traffic and
halting the spread of addiction.
Gives City Control
Commissioner George P. Lar
rick of the Food and Drug Ad-
ministration, appraised the pro-
visions giving the city control for
: the first time over barbiturateS
or sleeping pills and amphet-
amlnes or thrill" pills. He said
the bill seeks to provide full OPP
portunity for the use of these
drugs without unnecessary re-
; strictions in medical practice
While imposing such conditions
on its distribution and sale as
will insure they are used only
Tor medical purposes under suf-
ficient direction.
He said he believed the bill
would accomplish its purposes
without imposing any undue
burden on anyone.
F. Royce Franzoni. president
of the District Board of Phar-
macy, took a different view OF
the burdens. He said that in
the effort to give enforcement
officials what they needed to
control the sale of these pills.
we may have created undue
hardship and a financial burden
including the possible rise in the
, cost OF medicines" because OF
the recordkeeplng required.
Must Approve Money
DR.. Daniel l.. Seckinger. Dis
trict health director, made the
point that enough money would
have to be appropriated to take
care OF the addicts expected to
be controlled through the bill,
Miss Elizabeth A. Smart, di-
rector of legislation. National
'Woman's Christian Temperance
Union, said that if the addicts
were taken off the street as Wis
ualized in this legislation, nine
, tenths Of the District narcotics
problem would be solved.