Police Chiefs Say No to Legalizing Drugs

WASHINGTON — The nation’s police chiefs, showing they would rather fight than switch strategies, overwhelmingly oppose legalization of illicit drugs and favor tougher sentences for pushers and users, a survey released Sunday shows.

The poll of 882 police chiefs also found most support an expansion of education programs, particularly in lower grades, and about half had an officer wounded or killed in a drug-related crime last year.

The survey was conducted by Fleishman-Hillard Research of St. Louis, together with the Chiefs of Police National Drug Task Force and the National Assn. of Chiefs of Police.

Although legalization of drugs has been promoted as a way to take the profit motive out of drug trafficking, the survey found that 95% of police chiefs oppose it.