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Panamanian motor vessel Gatun during the largest cocaine bust in United States Coast Guard history (totalling 20 tons, worth over 600 million USD), off the coast of Panama.

The illegal drug trade is a global black market, dedicated to cultivation, manufacturing, distribution, and sale of drugs, which are subject to drug prohibition laws. Most jurisdictions prohibit trade, except under license, of many types of drugs by drug prohibition laws.

A UN report said "the global drug trade generated an estimated US$321.6 billion in 2003."^[1] With a world GDP of US$36 trillion in the same year, the illegal drug trade may be estimated as slightly less than 1% (0.893%) of total global commerce.^{[citation needed]} Consumption of illegal drugs is widespread globally.

History[link]

Addictive drugs were first prohibited in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.^[2][3][4] An Illegal Drug Trade emerged during the 19th century, China retaliated with imports of opium and two Opium Wars broke out. In the First Opium War the Chinese authorities had banned opium but the United Kingdom forced China to allow British merchants to trade opium with the general population. Smoking opium had become common in the 19th century and British merchants increased. Trading in opium was (as it is today in the heroin trade) extremely lucrative. As a result of this illegal trade an estimated two million Chinese people became addicted to the drug. The British Crown (via the treaties of Nanking and Tianjin) took vast sums of money from the Chinese government through this illegal trade which they referred to as "reparations".

Legal penalties[link]

This section requires expansion.

In many countries, drug smuggling carries severe penalties. These include lengthy periods of incarceration, flogging, and even the death penalty (in Singapore, Malaysia, etc). In 2010, two people were sentenced to death in Malaysia for trafficking 1 kilogram/2.2 pounds of cannabis into the country.^[5] On March 30, 2011, three Filipinos were executed by the Chinese government for drug trafficking.

Drug trafficking is widely regarded as the most serious of drug offences around the world. However, sentencing often depends on the type of drug (and its classification in the country into which it is being trafficked), the quantity trafficked, where the drugs are sold and how they are distributed; for example if the drugs are sold to underage people, then the penalties for trafficking may be harsher than in other circumstances.

Effects of illegal drug trade on societies[link]

The countries of drug production have been seen as the worst affected by prohibition.^{[citation needed]} Even so, countries receiving the illegally-imported substances are also affected by problems stemming from drug prohibition. For example, Ecuador has allegedly absorbed up to 300,000 refugees from Colombia who are running from guerrillas, paramilitaries and drug lords, says Linda Helfrich. While some applied for asylum, others are still illegal, and the drugs that pass from Colombia through Ecuador to other parts of South America create economic and social problems.^[6]

Violent crime[link]

In many countries worldwide, the illegal drug trade is thought to be directly linked to violent crimes such as murder; this is especially true in third world countries, but is also an issue for many developed countries worldwide.^[7]

In the late 1990s in the United States the Federal Bureau of Investigation estimated that 5% of murders were drug-related.^[7]

After a crackdown by U.S. and Mexican authorities in the first decade of the 21st century as part of tightened border security in the wake of the September 11 attacks, border violence inside Mexico surged. The Mexican government estimates that 90% of the killings are drug-related.^[8]

A report by the UK government's drug strategy unit that was subsequently leaked to the press, stated that due to the expensive price of highly addictive drugs heroin and cocaine, that drug use was responsible for the great majority of crime, including 85% for shoplifting, 70-80% of burglaries and 54% of robberies. "The cost of crime committed to support illegal cocaine and heroin habits amounts to £16 billion a year in the UK" (note: this is more than the entire annual UK Home Office budget).^[9]

Profits[link]

Due to its illicit nature, statistics about profits from the drug trade are largely unknown. In its 1997 World Drugs Report the UNODC estimated the value of the market at US$400 billion, ranking drugs alongside arms and oil amongst the world's largest traded goods.^[10] An online report published by the UK Home Office in 2007 estimated the illicit drug market in the UK at £4–6.6 billion a year^[11]

In December 2009, the United Nations' Drugs and Crime Tsar Antonio Maria Costa claimed that illegal drug money saved the banking industry from collapse. He claimed he had seen evidence that the proceeds of organised crime were "the only liquid investment capital" available to some banks on the brink of collapse during 2008. He said that a majority of the $352bn (£216bn) of drugs profits was absorbed into the economic system as a result. "In many instances, the money from drugs was the only liquid investment capital. In the second half of 2008, liquidity was the banking system's main problem and hence liquid capital became an important factor...Inter-bank loans were funded by money that originated from the drugs trade and other illegal activities... There were signs that some banks were rescued that way". Costa declined to identify countries or banks that may have received any drug money, saying that would be inappropriate because his office is supposed to address the problem, not apportion blame.^[12]

Minors and the illegal drug trade in the US[link]

The U.S. government's most recent 2005 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) reported that nationwide over 800,000 adolescents ages 12–17 sold illegal drugs during the twelve months preceding the survey.^[13] The 2005 Youth Risk Behavior Survey by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that nationwide 25.4% of students had been offered, sold, or given an illegal drug by someone on school property. The prevalence of having been offered, sold, or given an illegal drug on school property ranged from 15.5% to 38.8% across state CDC surveys (median: 26.1%) and from 20.3% to 40.0% across local surveys (median: 29.4%).^[14]

Despite over $7 billion spent annually towards arresting^[15] and prosecuting nearly 800,000 people across the country for marijuana offenses in 2005 (FBI Uniform Crime Reports), the federally-funded Monitoring the Future Survey reports about 85% of high school seniors find marijuana “easy to obtain.” That figure has remained virtually unchanged since 1975, never dropping below 82.7% in three decades of national surveys.^[16]

In 2009, the Justice Department identified more than 200 U.S. cities in which Mexican drug cartels "maintain drug distribution networks or supply drugs to distributors" - up from 100 three years earlier.^[17]

Illegal cocaine trade via West Africa[link]

Cocaine produced in Colombia, Venezuela and Bolivia has been increasingly shipped via West Africa (Guinea, Guinea-Bissau and Liberia). The money is often laundered in countries as Nigeria, Ghana and Senegal.

Cargo planes are now also used as a method of transport from the production countries to West-Africa. Before this, the cocaine was only shipped to the USA. Because the market became saturated there, illicit drug traders decided to increase shipping to Europe. When these new drug routes were uncovered by the authorities, West Africa was chosen as a stop-over. In 2005, the first major cocaine shipment was intercepted by the police. In 2007, 30% of all cocaine shipped to the UK was estimated to come from West Africa. In 2009, 50% of all cocaine shipped to the UK was estimated to come from West Africa.^{[citation needed]}

Drug mules, fishing boats, container ships, and submarines have been used to transship illegal drugs from West Africa to Europe.^{[citation needed]}

Especially in Guinea-Bissau, the drugs have been traded with the help of political leaders such as former presidents, the son of dictator Lansana Conté, and chiefs of staff of the army.^{[citation needed]}

According to the UN,^[who?] the value of illicit drug smuggling in Guinea-Bissau is higher than the value of the country's GDP. Policemen are often bribed. A policeman's normal monthly wage of 75 € is less than 2% of the value of 1 kilogram of cocaine (7000 €).^{[citation needed]}

The money can be laundered using real estate. A house is built using illegal funds. When the house is sold, legal money is earned.^[18]

Inexpensive illicit drugs, such as crack, are now in distribution. This decreases the economic productivity and diminishes any safety goal for the intended end user.^{[citation needed]}

When drugs are sent overland, through the Sahara, the drug traders have been increasingly forced to cooperate with terrorist organisations, such as Al Qaida in Islamic Maghreb.^[19][20]

Trade of specific drugs[link]

This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (May 2010)

Cannabis[link]

4 ounces of cannabis

While the recreational use of (and consequently the distribution of) cannabis is illegal in most countries throughout the world, it is available by prescription or recommendation in many places, including some US states and in Canada.^[21] Cannabis use is tolerated in some areas, most notably the Netherlands which has legalized the possession and licensed sale (but not production) of the drug. Many nations have decriminalized the possession of small amounts of marijuana. Due to the hardy nature of the Cannabis plant, marijuana is grown all across the world and is today the world's most popular illegal drug with the highest availability. Cannabis is grown legally in many countries for industrial, non-drug use (known as hemp) as well. Cannabis-Hemp may also be planted for other non-drug domestic purposes such as seasoning in Aceh.

Tobacco[link]

While the purchase and use of tobacco is legal for adults in most countries throughout the world, heavy taxation in some countries such as the United Kingdom has resulted in an extensive market for its illegal trade. Tobacco products such as name-brand cigarettes may be sold as low as one third of the retail price because of the lack of taxes which would be imposed throughout the legal distribution process. It was estimated in 2004 that smuggling a single truck containing up to 48,000 cartons of cigarettes from Virginia to New York in the United States could lead to a profit of around US$2 million.^[22]

Wikinews has related news: Nearly three million contraband cigarettes seized by Canadian and U.S. authorities

The source of the illegally-traded tobacco is often the proceeds from other crimes, such as store and transportation robberies.

A notable exception to the legal status of tobacco in most countries internationally is the kingdom of Bhutan, which made the sale of tobacco illegal in December 2004,^[23] and since this event, a large supply of tobacco has been made available on the black market. In 2006, tobacco and betel nut were the most commonly seized illicit drugs in Bhutan.^[24]

Heroin[link]

A field of opium poppies in Burma.

Up until fairly recently the majority of the world's heroin was produced in an area known as the Golden Triangle (Southeast Asia).^[25] In 2008 Afghanistan was by a very wide margin "the world's largest exporter of heroin".^[26][27] In 2007, 93% of the opiates on the world market originated in Afghanistan.^[28] This amounts to an export value of about $64 billion, with a quarter being earned by opium farmers and the rest going to district officials, insurgents, warlords and drug traffickers.^[29] Another significant area where poppy fields are grown for the manufacture of heroin is Mexico.

According to the United States Drug Enforcement Administration, the price of heroin is typically valued 8 to 10 times that of cocaine on American streets, making it a high-profit substance for smugglers and dealers.^[30] In Europe (except the transit countries Portugal and the Netherlands), for example, a purported gram of street heroin, usually consisting of 700–800 mg of a light to dark brown powder containing 5-10% heroin base, costs between 30 and 70 euros, making the effective value per gram of pure heroin between 300 and 700 euros. Heroin is generally a preferred target for smuggling and distribution over unrefined opium due to the cost-effectiveness and increased efficacy^{[citation needed]} of heroin.

Because of the high cost per volume, heroin is easily smuggled. A quarter-sized^{[clarification needed]} vial can contain hundreds of doses. From the 1930s to the early 1970s, the so-called French Connection supplied the majority of US demand. Allegedly, during the Vietnam War, drug lords such as Ike Atkinson used to smuggle hundreds of kilos of heroin to the U.S. in coffins of dead American soldiers (see Cadaver Connection). Since that time it has become more difficult for drugs to be imported into the United States than it had been in previous decades, but that does not stop the heroin smugglers from getting their product onto U.S. soil. Purity levels vary greatly by region with, for the most part, Northeastern cities having the most pure heroin in the United States. (According to a recently released^[when?] report by the DEA, Camden and Newark, New Jersey and Philadelphia, have the purest street grade A heroin in the country.)^{[citation needed]}

Penalties for smuggling heroin and/or morphine are often harsh in most countries. Some countries will readily hand down a death sentence (e.g. Singapore) or life in prison for the illegal smuggling of heroin or morphine, which are both, internationally, Schedule I drugs under the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs.^{[citation needed]}

Methamphetamine[link]

Methamphetamine is another popular drug among distributors. Three common street names are "crystal meth", "meth", and "ice".^[31]

According to the Community Epidemiology Work Group, the numbers of clandestine methamphetamine laboratory incidents reported to the National Clandestine Laboratory Database decreased from 1999 to 2009. During this same period, methamphetamine lab incidents increased in midwestern States (Illinois, Michigan, Missouri, and Ohio), and in Pennsylvania. In 2004, more lab incidents were reported in Missouri (2,788) and Illinois (1,058) than in California (764). In 2003, methamphetamine lab incidents reached new highs in Georgia (250), Minnesota (309), and Texas (677). There were only seven methamphetamine lab incidents reported in Hawaii in 2004, though nearly 59 percent of substance abuse treatment admissions (excluding alcohol) were for primary methamphetamine abuse during the first six months of 2004. As of 2007, Missouri leads the United States in clandestine lab seizures, with 1,268 incidents reported.^[32] Often canine units are used for detecting rolling meth labs which can be concealed on large vehicles, or transported on something as small as a motorcycle. These labs are more difficult to detect than stationary ones, and can be often obscured with the legal cargo on big trucks.^[33]

Methamphetamine is sometimes used in an injectable form, placing users and their partners at risk for transmission of HIV and hepatitis C.^[34] "Meth" can also be inhaled, most commonly vaporized on aluminum foil, or through a test tube or light bulb fashioned into a pipe. This method is reported to give "an unnatural high" and a "brief intense rush".^[35]

In South Africa methamphetamine is called "tik" or "tik-tik".^{[citation needed]} Children as young as eight are abusing the substance, smoking it in crude glass vials made from light bulbs.^{[citation needed]} Since methamphetamine is easy to produce, the substance is manufactured locally in staggering quantities.^{[citation needed]}

Temazepam[link]

Temazepam, a strong hypnotic benzodiazepine, is illicitly manufactured in clandestine laboratories (called jellie labs) to supply the increasingly high demand for the hypnotic drug internationally.^[36] Many clandestine temazepam labs are in Eastern Europe. The way in which they manufacture the temazepam is through chemical alteration of diazepam, oxazepam or lorazepam.^[37] Clandestine "jellie labs" have been identified and shutdown in Russia, Ukraine, Czech Republic, Latvia and Belarus.^[38]

In the United Kingdom, temazepam is the most widely-abused legal, prescription drug^{[citation needed]}. It's also the most commonly abused benzodiazepine in Finland, Ireland, the Netherlands, Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary, India, Russia, People's Republic of China, New Zealand, Australia and some parts of Southeast Asia^{[citation needed]}. In Sweden it has been banned due to a problem with drug abuse issues and a high rate of death caused by temazepam alone relative to other drugs of its group. Surveys in many countries show that temazepam, heroin, cocaine, MDMA, cannabis, nimetazepam, and amphetamines rank among the top illegal drugs most frequently abused.^{[39][40][41][42][43][44][45][46][47][48][49]}

U.S. Government involvement[link]

The U.S. Federal Government is an opponent of the illegal drug trade; however, state laws vary greatly and in some cases contradict federal laws. Despite the US government's official position against the drug trade, US government agents and assets have been implicated in the drug trade and were caught and investigated during the Iran-Contra scandal, implicated in the use of the drug trade as a secret source of funding for the USA's support of the Contras. Page 41 of the December 1988 Kerry report to the US Senate^[50] states that "indeed senior US policy makers were not immune to the idea that drug money was a perfect solution to the Contra's funding problem."

Acclaimed investigator and former DEA agent Michael Levine has alleged that the CIA participated in orchestrating the 1980 Cocaine Coup in Bolivia to install an Operation Condor military government, in place of the pre-coup civilian government. The pre-coup government had collaborated with the DEA in bringing leaders of the Roberto Suarez cartel to justice, and Levine alleges that the CIA not only intervened judicially to release the extradited cartel leaders and allow their flight to Bolivia, but also enabled them to collaborate with right-wing military factions in overthrowing the civilian government that had collaborated with the DEA. The drug links of the coup government were obvious to the international community, which led to the coup becoming termed "the Cocaine Coup" by historians. Levine alleges that one of the CIA agents who participated in the coup was Klaus Barbie, the former SS Nazi known as the "Butcher of Lyon," who had previously collaborated with the CIA in Bolivia during the capture and execution of Che Guevara.

Contrary to its official goals, the US has suppressed research on drug usage, although the CIA researched regardless during MKULTRA. For example, in 1995 the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI) announced in a press release the publication of the results of the largest global study on cocaine use ever undertaken. However, a decision in the World Health Assembly banned the publication of the study. In the sixth meeting of the B committee the US representative threatened that "If WHO activities relating to drugs failed to reinforce proven drug control approaches, funds for the relevant programmes should be curtailed". This led to the decision to discontinue publication. A part of the study has been released.^[51] Several government-sponsored reports by commissioned experts have pointed to public substance abuse treatment as opposed to criminalization as the only effective way to battle the public health crisis caused by drugs; these recommendations have been mostly ignored by US government officials, and in some cases suppressed.

See also[link]

• Counterfeit drug
• Khat
• Legal drug trade

International coordination:

• Interpol
• United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances

Case studies:

• Drug policy of the Soviet Union
• Federal Police (Mexico)
• Illegal drug trade in Colombia
• Illegal drug trade in the People's Republic of China
• Mexican Drug War

US specific:

• Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF)
• Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)
• Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
• Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)
• United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP)

References[link]

Further reading[link]

• Murillo, Luis E. (1995). The Noriega Mess: The Drugs, the Canal, and Why America Invaded. 1096 pages, illustrated. Berkeley: Video Books. ISBN 0-923444-02-5.

External links[link]

• "The Forgotten Drug War", published by the Council on Foreign Relations
• Illicit drug issues by country, by the CIA
• United Summaries of EU legislation: Combating drugs
• LANIC Drug Production, Consumption, and Trafficking page
• The illicit drug trade in the United Kingdom – 2007 Home Office report
• UNODC – United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime – World Drug Campaign
• Texas School Survey of Drug and Alcohol Use – The nation's largest online library of state-funded school district survey reports showing annual substance use trends among Texas students, covering years 1989–2009.
• Global Drug Trade Market Data Havocscope Black Markets

v t e Recreational drug use Major recreational drugs Opioids Buprenorphine (Subutex · Suboxone) Codeine Dextropropoxyphene (Darvon · Darvocet) Diamorphine (heroin) \ Morphine (Opium) Hydrocodone Hydromorphone (Dilaudid) Methadone Mitragyna speciosa (Kratom) Oxycodone Depressants Barbiturates Benzodiazepines Ethanol (Alcoholic beverages) GHB Kava Nonbenzodiazepines Stimulants Amphetamine Arecoline (Areca) Betel Caffeine (Coffee Tea) Cathinone (Khat) Cocaine (Coca) Ephedrine (Ephedra) Mephedrone Methamphetamine Methylphenidate Nicotine (Tobacco) Theobromine (Cocoa) Entactogens MDA MDMA (Ecstasy) Hallucinogens Psychedelics Bufotenin Psychoactive toads Vilca Yopo DMT (Ayahuasca) LSA LSD-25 Mescaline Peruvian Torch Peyote San Pedro Psilocybin \ Psilocin (Psilocybin mushrooms) Dissociatives DXM Inhalants Nitrous oxide alkyl nitrites – poppers, such as amyl nitrite Ketamine MXE Muscimol (Amanita muscaria) PCP Salvinorin A (Salvia divinorum) Deliriants Atropine and Scopolamine Datura Deadly Nightshade Henbane Mandrake Dimenhydrinate Diphenhydramine Cannabinoids JWH-018 THC (Cannabis Hashish Hash oil) Oneirogens Calea zacatechichi Silene capensis Drug culture Cannabis 420 Cannabis cultivation Cannabis smoking Legal history of cannabis in the United States Legality of cannabis Marijuana Policy Project Medical cannabis NORML Religious and spiritual use of cannabis Stoner film Psychedelic Art Drug Experience Literature Music Other Club drug Counterculture of the 1960s Dance party Drug paraphernalia Drug tourism Entheogen Hippie Party and play Poly drug use Rave Self-medication Sex and drugs Problems with drug use Abuse Dependence Prevention Opioid replacement therapy Rehabilitation Responsible use Drug-related crime Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder Illegal drug trade Long-term effects of cannabis Neurotoxicity Overdose Date-rape drug Passive smoking (of tobacco or other substances) Legality of drug use International 1961 Narcotic Drugs 1971 Psychotropic Substances 1988 Drug Trafficking Cannabis reform at the international level State level Drug policy Decriminalization Prohibition Supply reduction Policy reform Demand reduction Drug Policy Alliance Harm reduction Law Enforcement Against Prohibition Liberalization Students for Sensible Drug Policy Transform Drug Policy Foundation Drug policy by country Australia Canada Germany India Netherlands Portugal Sweden Switzerland Soviet Union United States Just Say No Office of National Drug Control Policy School district drug policies California Colorado Maryland Virginia Other Arguments for and against drug prohibition Capital punishment for drug trafficking Designer drug Drug court Drug possession Drug test Hard and soft drugs Illegal drug trade in Colombia Mexican Drug War Narc Opium production in Afghanistan Politics of drug abuse War on Drugs Zero tolerance Lists of countries by... Alcohol consumption Cannabis legality Annual use Lifetime use Cigarette consumption Cocaine use Opiates use

Tony Free is a former Australian rules football player who played in the VFL/AFL between 1987 and 1996 for the Richmond Football Club.

References[link]

• Hogan P: The Tigers Of Old, Richmond FC, Melbourne 1996

This Australian rules football biography of a person born in the 1960s is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v t e

Rayful Edmond III (born November 26, 1964 in Washington, D.C.), was a notorious drug dealer who is largely credited with introducing crack cocaine into the Washington, D.C. area. During this time period, Washington, DC was known as the "murder capital" because crack cocaine had ravaged the city, so much so that people were afraid to leave their homes, or take public transportation.^[1]

Criminal career[link]

Edmond was alleged to have moved large amounts of cocaine. In an indictment involving two of Edmond's associates, it said that they bought between 1,000 and 2,000 kilos per week, in 1992, from the Trujillo-Blanco brothers, who were associated with the Medellin cartel, and sold the drugs to Washington area wholesalers. He was known to have spent some $457,619 in an exclusive Georgetown store (Linea Pitti, specializing in Italian men's clothing) owned by Charles Wynn who was later convicted on 34 counts of money laundering. Edmond's estimated revenue was approximately $300 million annually.^[2] In one year, Edmond's organization, which employed 150 people, committed 30 murders.^[3]

The Meeting With Coach Thompson[link]

Edmond was an avid fan of the Georgetown Hoyas, and frequently sat courtside with his entourage at the Capital Centre for home games. At the height of his empire, he became very friendly with several Hoyas players. When Georgetown University basketball coach (and D.C. native) John Thompson confirmed what was happening, he sent word through his sources to have Edmond meet him at his office at McDonough Gymnasium.

When Edmond arrived, Thompson was initially cordial, and informed Edmond that he needed to cease all contacts with his players,^[4] specifically John Turner and Alonzo Mourning, both of whom had befriended Edmond.^[5] However, Thompson's parting words to Edmond were that Edmond would face serious consequences if he did not stay away from his players.^[6] It is believed that Thompson is the only person to stand up to Edmond without consequence,^[7] initially causing some shock and surprise that there was no reprisal against Thompson for it.

Arrest, trial, and conviction[link]

Edmond was arrested in 1989 at the age of 24. His arrest and subsequent trial were widely covered by local and national media. Judicial officials, fearful of reprisals from members of Edmond's gang, imposed unprecedented security during the trial. Jurors' identities were kept secret before, during, and after trial, and their seating area was enclosed in bulletproof glass. The presiding judge even barred the public from the trial in an effort to protect the jury.^[3] Edmond was jailed at the maximum security facility at Marine Corps Base Quantico in Virginia and flown to the Federal Court House in Washington, D.C. by helicopter each day for his trial. Authorities took this unusual step due to heightened fears of an armed escape attempt. This gang was believed to have committed over 400 murders not including the attempted murder of a local pastor, the Reverend Mr. Bynum, who was shot 12 times during an anti-drug march in his Orleans Place neighborhood.^[8]

Edmond was convicted of numerous federal violations: (1) Engaging in a Continuing Criminal Enterprise, under 21 U.S.C. §§ 848(b), 853 (Count One); (2) Conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute more than 5 kilograms of cocaine and more than 50 grams of cocaine base, under 21 U.S.C. § 846 (Count Two); (3) Unlawfully employing a person under 18 years of age, under 21 U.S.C. § 845b (Count Five); (4) Interstate travel in aid of racketeering, under 18 U.S.C. § 1952(a) (Count Eleven); (5) Unlawful use of a communications facility, under 21 U.S.C. § 843(b) (Counts Fourteen, Fifteen, Sixteen, and Eighteen).^[8]

On September 17, 1990, the District Court imposed sentences of mandatory life without parole on Count One, life without parole on Counts Two and Five, 60 months on Count Eleven, and 48 months on Counts Fourteen, Fifteen, Sixteen, and Eighteen. Edmond's sentences were to run concurrently.^[8]

Edmond was eventually sentenced to life in prison without parole. His mother, Constance "Bootsie" Perry,^[9] was sentenced to 14 years in prison for participating in his criminal enterprise. Several of his sisters and cousins also received sentences.^[8]

Rayful continued to deal after being incarcerated in Lewisburg, PA federal prison. He hooked up with Dixon Dario and Osvaldo “Chiqui” Trujillo-Blanco (son of Griselda "Godmother" Trujillo Blanco) who shared the same cell block with him. Rayful was setting up deals between D.C. area traffickers and his Colombian connect (Dario and Blanco) while incarcerated.(2) In 1996, Edmond and another drug dealer from Atlanta, named Lowe, were convicted after conducting drug business from a federal prison phone. Edmond received an additional 30-year sentence. Edmond's case is one of the most notorious abuses of such phone privileges,^[10] and an embarrassment for the Bureau of Prisons. In an interview with the Bureau of Prisons, Edmond said he had spent several hours every day on the telephone, occasionally using two lines simultaneously to conduct his drug business.

Following this conviction, Edmond became a government informant, the reasons for which remain unknown and create speculation to this day. Some speculate it was to secure his mother's release from prison, however his mother was arrested in the original indictments and spent time in prison and Edmond did not become an informant during this time. Edmond is still incarcerated but is now part of the United States Federal Witness Protection Program and his place of incarceration is confidential.

See also[link]

• Continuing Criminal Enterprise

References[link]

External links[link]

• Rayful at BET Shows - American Gangster
• washingtonpost.com

Rob Andrews
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New Jersey's 1st district
Incumbent
Assumed office November 6, 1990
Preceded by	Jim Florio
Personal details
Born	Robert Ernest Andrews (1957-08-04) August 4, 1957 (age 54) Camden, New Jersey
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Camille Andrews
Children	Jackie and Josie
Residence	Haddon Heights, New Jersey
Alma mater	Bucknell University, Cornell University
Occupation	college professor
Religion	Episcopalian

Robert Ernest "Rob" Andrews (born August 4, 1957) is the U.S. Representative for New Jersey's 1st congressional district, serving since 1990. He is a member of the Democratic Party. The district includes most of Camden County and parts of Burlington County and Gloucester County.

Before his election to Congress, Andrews was a member of the Camden County Board of Chosen Freeholders from 1986 to 1990, including two years as freeholder director (1988–1990). A native of Camden and graduate of Bucknell University and Cornell Law School, he was an attorney and an adjunct professor at the Rutgers School of Law–Camden. In the U.S. House of Representatives, he serves on the Committee on Armed Services, Committee on the Budget, and Committee on Education and Labor, where he serves as chairman of the Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions.

Andrews was an unsuccessful candidate for the Democratic nomination in the 2008 U.S. Senate election, being defeated by incumbent U.S. Senator Frank Lautenberg. In November 2008, he received more votes than anyone ever elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from New Jersey.^[1]

Early life, education, and early career[link]

Andrews was born in Camden, New Jersey, the son of Josephine (née Amies) and Ernest Andrews.^[2] He grew up in Bellmawr, and currently lives in nearby Haddon Heights. He attended Triton Regional High School in Runnemede.^[3] Andrews graduated from Bucknell University in 1979 with a B.A. in political science. He later attended Cornell University Law School, earning his J.D. degree in 1982.

For several years, Andrews was involved in legal education as a member of Cornell Law Review's board of editors. He also was an adjunct professor at Rutgers University-Camden Law School. From 1983 onward, Andrews had a private law practice. In 1987, he was elected as a member of the Camden County Board of Chosen Freeholders.

He was one of the only three Democrats to sign Grover Norquist's 1996 Pledge to oppose any and all efforts to increase income tax rate for individuals and business, and to oppose any net reduction or elimination of deductions and credits.

U.S. House of Representatives[link]

Elections[link]

In 1990, after a 15-year incumbent Democrat U.S. Congressman James Florio resigned from the U.S. House of Representatives to take office as Governor of New Jersey, Andrews won the 1990 special election with 55% of the vote.^[4] In the general election of 1990, he won again with 54%.^[5] After that, he never won re-election with less than 63% of the vote.^[6]

Tenure[link]

Andrews is generally considered a moderate by Democratic standards. The New York Times has characterized Congressman Andrews as "fiscally conservative...and socially moderate."^[7] Rep. Andrews has a lifetime rating of 17.24 (and a 2007 rating of 0) from the American Conservative Union and a 2007 rating of 100 from Americans for Democratic Action.^[8][9] He has a liberal rating of 76.2 and a conservative rating of 23.8 from the National Journal.^[10]

Rep. Andrews has served for his entire Congressional career on the House Committee on Education and Labor. He was the Democratic leader and Ranking Member on the Education Subcommittee on Employer-Employee Relations, and is currently the Chairman of the Education Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions which has responsibility for the health insurance, pension and labor laws of the nation. Rep. Andrews also serves on the House Armed Services Committee, which maintains jurisdiction over funding for the military forces.

Using Amtrak to commute from his Haddon Heights home while Congress is in session so that he can be closer to his family and constituents, Andrews does not maintain a residence in Washington, D.C.. Andrews is an ardent supporter of Amtrak subsidies.

Andrews voted for the Secure Fence Act of 2006, authorizing the erection of a 700-mile fence across the U.S.-Mexico border.

On October 10, 2002, Rob Andrews was among the 81 House Democrats who voted in favor of authorizing the invasion of Iraq (126 Democrats in the House were opposed) and was the only Democratic member of the New Jersey Congressional delegation to co-sponsor the Iraq Resolution.^[11][12] In 2005, he voted in favor of amending the U.S. Constitution to prohibit desecration of the American flag. The proposed amendment was later defeated in the Senate.^[13] In the same year he voted for the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act which makes it more difficult for individuals to declare bankruptcy under Chapter 7 and encourages declaration of bankruptcy under Chapter 13.^[14]

Senators Frank Lautenberg, Bob Menendez,^[15] and Andrews^[16] were the only members of the New Jersey Democratic Congressional Delegation to vote for the Military Commissions Act of 2006. He was also involved in proposing a bill for sanctioning Iran in 2007. The Iran Sanctions Enhancement Act of 2007 targets any company or individual that provides Iran with refined petroleum products or engages in an activity that could contribute to the enhancement of Iran's ability to import refined products after December 31, 2007.^[17]

Andrews is a signer of Americans for Tax Reform’s Taxpayer Protection Pledge.^[18]

2008 presidential election

Andrews is a superdelegate within the Democratic Party and prior to the New Jersey primary he endorsed Hillary Clinton for the Democratic nomination.^[19] Following the results from the Indiana and North Carolina primaries Andrews stated that he believed Senator Barack Obama would win the nomination and that the party should unite behind him. However he did not switch his vote as a superdelegate from Clinton to Obama stating that "such a move might 'retard' the process of unifying the party".^[20]

Committee assignments[link]

• Committee on Armed Services
  • Subcommittee on Strategic Forces
  • Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities
• Committee on Education and the Workforce
  • Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Training
  • Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions (Ranking Member)

Caucus memberships[link]

• Congressional Arts Caucus

Campaigns for higher office[link]

1997 gubernatorial election[link]

In 1997, Andrews ran for Governor of New Jersey. In the Democratic primary, Andrews was defeated 40%-37%, a margin of just 9,993 votes, by State Senator Jim McGreevey.^[21][22]

Speculation between 1998 and 2007[link]

Andrews was reportedly considering a primary challenge in 2005, before McGreevey's resignation. While Andrews had been frequently mentioned as a possible replacement for Jon Corzine's United States Senate seat after Corzine's November 2005 gubernatorial victory, Bob Menendez was eventually chosen by Corzine to fill the vacancy. Andrews had informally announced his plan to run in the 2006 Democratic primary against Menendez, but in January 2006 announced that he would run for a ninth full term in the House and seek the Senate seat in 2008 if U.S. Senator Frank Lautenberg retired.

2008 U.S. Senate election[link]

He decided to challenge incumbent U.S. Senator Frank Lautenberg in the 2008 Democratic primary in New Jersey. Andrews also announced that he would not seek re-election to his U.S. House district in 2008.^[23] His wife, Camille Andrews stood as a candidate for his U.S. House seat instead, although she said she might withdraw in favor of another candidate chosen by the party.^[24]

Andrews was beaten by Lautenberg in the Senate primary, but Camille Andrews won the Democratic primary for his seat in the House. After losing to Lautenberg, Rob Andrews decided to run for re-election to his House seat; Camille withdrew her candidacy on September 3, and Rob Andrews announced that on September 4 that he would take her place as the Democratic candidate. Despite strong public opinion to the contrary, he maintained that his wife had not been merely a placeholder candidate and said that he had only decided to run for re-election a week before he announced it; according to Andrews, his change of heart was a result of personal reflection: "I just looked deep into what I believe in and decided that this is what I had to do."^[25]

Personal life[link]

Andrews is married to Camille Spinello Andrews, an Associate Dean of Enrollment and Projects at Rutgers School of Law - Camden. They have two daughters, Jackie and Josie.^[26]

Electoral history[link]