Combating the trafficking of illegal drugs is a core priority of the Department of Justice. Drug abuse ruins lives and is a great threat to America's youth. The Department is committed to enforcing our nation's drug laws and reducing the supply of these dangerous substances. The Office of Legal Policy (OLP) works closely with other components within the Department of Justice and other government agencies to develop drug policy on behalf of the Department and the Administration. Assistant Attorney General Brand is the co-chair of the Synthetic Drug Control Policy Interagency Committee and the Department's Anti-Methamphetamine Coordination Committee.

Most recently, efforts to combat methamphetamines and the abuse of controlled substance prescription drugs are the primary areas of focus for OLP. OLP conceived of and managed the development of the first-ever National Methamphetamine Awareness Day, which the President declared on November 30, 2006. Assistant Attorney General Brand participated in several National Methamphetamine Awareness Day events in Iowa.

Methamphetamine Awareness

Testimony & Speeches:

Remarks of Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales on Combating Drug Use at the "Monitoring the Future" Press Conference (December 21, 2006)

Transcript of Panel Discussion Hosted by Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales for National Methamphetamine Awareness Day (November 30, 2006)

Remarks of Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales at the National Methamphetamine and Chemicals Initiative Strategy Conference (May 18, 2006)

Remarks of Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales on Efforts to Combat Methamphetamine at a Town Hall Meeting in Waleska, Georgia (March 20, 2006)

Remarks of Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales at the Senators' National Town Hall on Methamphetamine Awareness and Prevention (January 23, 2006)

Testimony of Joseph T. Rannazzisi, Deputy Assistant Administrator, Drug Enforcement Administration's Office of Diversion Control, on Breaking the Methamphetamine Supply Chain: Law Enforcement Challenges (September 12, 2006)

Testimony of Joseph T. Rannazzisi, Deputy Assistant Administrator, Drug Enforcement Administration's Office of Diversion Control, on Prescription Drug Abuse: What is Being Done to Address This New Drug Epidemic? (July 26, 2006)

Testimony of Joseph T. Rannazzisi, Deputy Assistant Administrator, Drug Enforcement Administration's Office of Diversion Control, on Efforts to Combat the Illegal Distribution of Controlled Substance Pharmaceuticals via the Internet (December 13, 2006)

Testimony of Joseph T. Rannazzisi, Deputy Assistant Administrator, Drug Enforcement Administration's Office of Diversion Control, on Comprehensively Combating Methamphetamine: Impact on Health and the Environment (October 20, 2005)

Reports & Additional Resources:

Drug Court Study, June 2006

Synthetic Drug Control Strategy, June 2006

National Drug Control Strategy, February 2006

Federal Cocaine Offenses: An Analysis of Crack and Powder Penalties, March 2002