Senate Allows Suits Against Drug Dealers

Legislation authorizing civil damage suits against drug peddlers has cleared the state Senate.

The bill, sent to the House on a 27-7 vote on Monday, mirrors laws enacted in six other states and now under consideration in a number of others.

“The goal is to empower the everyday citizen to fight drug trafficking,” Democratic Sen. Betsy Dunklin of Boise said. “It creates a financial disincentive for the lowest level of drug dealers to participate in this business.”

Under the bill, anyone connected to a drug user from relatives to employers, insurance companies or employee assistance providers can sue anyone who sold drugs in the area where the user took drugs or at the same time he took them.

Proving that the defendant sold drugs would require clear and convincing evidence, but holding the defendant liable for damages once drug sales have been proved would require only the lesser level of a preponderance of the evidence.

Critics claimed the bill was misfocused and essentially overlooked the fact that drug users make a choice to take drugs and should not be able to escape that responsibility.