"There is no logical basis for the prohibition of marijuana. $7.7 billion is a lot of money, but that is one of the lesser evils. Our failure to successfully enforce these laws is responsible for the deaths of thousands of people in Colombia. I haven't even included the harm to young people. It's absolutely disgraceful to think of picking up a 22-year-old for smoking pot. More disgraceful is the denial of marijuana for medical purposes."
Milton Friedman
Nobel Prize Winning Economist

Terry Nelson

During Terry Nelson's 32 years in law enforcement, he was directly involved in many counter-narcotics missions. This meant he has had the opportunity to observe the Drug War up close. "Each year we would seize — or assist in seizing — mega-ton loads of cocaine; and it was making absolutely no difference."


His law-enforcement career included service in the US Border Patrol, the US Customs Service, and the Department of Homeland Security, taking him beyond US borders into Mexico, Central America, and South America. He retired in 2005 as a GS-14 Air/Marine Group Supervisor. He is a veteran of the U.S. Coast Guard, having served as a communications specialist in Vietnam, Thailand, and the Philippines. He served 9 years in the U.S. Border Patrol including a stint as Instructor and the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, 3 years in marine operations in the Florida Keys, 1 year a Customs Inspector at DFW Airport, 7 years as an Air Interdiction Officer/Criminal Investigator, 2 years as Staff Officer to Director of Foreign Operations and 5 years on the staff of Field Director (SSB East) Surveillance Support Branch East. During this period SSBE team participated in the seizure of over 230,000 pounds of Cocaine and received the United States Interdiction Committee award for interdictions.

He labored with distinction, even receiving special Congressional recognition for his work. Despite his success, Terry came to understand that drug prohibition was doing more harm than good, and that the United States needed a major policy change. For many years he thought about decriminalization, but didn't want to go so far as legalization. Finally he decided that the legalized regulation of all drugs is the only solution. That decision led to his joining LEAP — the first group he has ever joined!

"We have a problem with drugs in this country and we choose to criminalize the behaviour; and then we choose to hold other nations responsible for shipping drugs to our country. Well, it's supply and demand. It’s been that way since time began. If you have a demand, someone will find a way to supply it."