MASSACHUSETTS

Massachusetts was the site of the first studies on the effectiveness of drug-free zone laws, which found that the statutes had no deterrent effect, and were applied more often to people of color. Justice Strategies has examined the impact of the laws in the state since 2005.

Massachusetts drug-free zone law ineffective, not evenly enforced

In Massachusetts, where 80 percent of those sentenced with the drug-free enhancement are ethnic and racial minorities, two different research efforts have determined that the laws are not working as intended. Researchers affiliated with the Boston University School of Public Health found that decisions by police and prosecutors to invoke the statute had little or nothing to do with keeping drugs away from schoolchildren. A research team at Northeastern University School of Law found disturbing patterns of racial disparity in arrests and charging practices.

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