Model Drug Dealer Liability Act

Drug Watch International
Position Statement

Model Drug Dealer Liability Act

Current laws clearly permit those negligently injured and requiring medical treatment, in virtually every aspect of our lives, to recover from the negligent party. However, in the states that have not yet passed the Model Drug Dealer Liability Act (DDLA), those injured by the intentional distribution of illegal drugs are not guaranteed the right to recover similar compensation.

In most states the producer of a product that injures a consumer can be liable for injuries resulting from the use of that product; however, in 37 states it is not clear under established law whether those physically or financially harmed by drugs can compel dealers in their community to pay for the injuries they cause. To date, the Model DDLA has been passed in 13 states to make drug dealers liable -- under civil law -- for the injuries caused by illegal drugs Model DDLA. For further information about these cases, readers can see www.modelddla.com

Background:

While the criminal justice system has been fully engaged with the drug problem in America, the civil justice system has been correspondingly inert. When the concept of “market liability” has been applied by the courts to defective pharmaceuticals, asbestos, and other seriously injurious legal products, it has resulted in the destruction of the legal markets for those products. The Model DDLA imposes such “market liability” on a market that richly deserves to be destroyed, i.e. illegal drugs.

Rationale:

The Model DDLA is a product liability act for illegal drugs. It establishes a form of "market liability" so that anyone physically or financially harmed by drugs need not prove that a particular defendant's illegal drugs caused their injuries. Proving the identity of each person in the chain of distribution in the clandestine illegal drug market, from the dealer to the user whose use caused another person’s injury, would be an impossible task. Instead, under the Model DDLA, the plaintiff must only prove that the defendant was distributing illegal drugs in the community at the time that the plaintiff was exposed to, and injured by, that dealer's type of drug.

Current federal and state drug forfeiture laws require that the money seized from convicted drug dealers be returned to the dealer from whom it was seized, unless it is directly connected to their drug crimes. The Model DDLA makes all of a dealer's assets recoverable to pay for medical treatment and injuries caused by illegal drugs in the dealer's community. Because the consequences of a civil judgment do not end with release from prison, payment for treatment and injuries can last until paid in full with interest. The Model DDLA permits parents of children in drug treatment, drug babies, victims of drugged drivers, state and county public agencies that pay for drug treatment and/or illegal drug related medical care, hospitals caring for drug babies, and others who are financially injured because of illegal drugs to recover in a civil suit any assets of drug dealers who have distributed drugs in their communities. Without the Model DDLA it would be difficult, if not impossible, for such recovery to be obtained.

Established civil law principles allow civil recovery from manufacturers of hazardous materials for injury caused by such materials which effect health, even where a particular plaintiff cannot determine which manufacturer manufactured the particular product that caused them injury. This is called "market liability" or "market-share liability" in existing case law. Yet, except for the states that have passed the Model DDLA, existing law does not now clearly establish such recovery for injuries caused by hazardous illegal drugs that are known to affect people and harm the community. The Model DDLA would change this legal anomaly by imposing liability, including "market liability," on dealers of illegal drugs.

Conclusion:

The American Legislative Exchange Council has adopted the Model DDLA as its model legislation. During the drafting of the Model DDLA, it was subject to review and comment nationally by more than 50 members of the legal, law enforcement, drug prevention, civil rights, business, and other communities. It has now been closely examined and adopted by the legislative process in Arkansas, California, Colorado, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Michigan, Oklahoma, South Dakota, South Carolina, and Utah.

Once enacted and publicized throughout the country, every dealer should know that law enforcement and criminal prosecution is only part of their problem. Furthermore, injured parents and families would have the tools to make the dealers with identifiable assets pay everything they own for the injury they cause.

Drug Watch International strongly supports the adoption of the Model Drug Dealer Liability Act in each state so that clear civil legal consequences will be established for the act of distributing drugs in America's communities.

Drug Watch International strongly recommends that state legislatures adopt the original Model Drug Dealer Liability Act with only minor modifications required by the particular circumstances of their individual state. With the assistance and review of numerous experienced litigators, the various provisions of the Model DDLA were drafted principally by a former Federal Prosecutor with over 18 years of criminal prosecution experience and over 25 years experience as a litigator and mediator of complex disputes.

Drug Watch International strongly recommends that the “findings” set forth in the Model Drug Dealer Liability Act be included in an adopting state’s Act. The findings were specifically drafted to be the foundation of the defense of any attack on the Act by defendants during litigation.

References:

Model Drug Dealer Liability Act
For a copy of the Model Drug Dealer Liability Act, a current list of states that have passed it, and a current list of cases brought under the Model DDLA, visit the website at: www.modelddla.com

(February 2001)

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