Major Franklin will discuss why it is more compassionate to advocate for the regulation and control of drugs, and have a law enforcement approach that defends human rights and views drug misusers as persons in need of treatment as opposed to punishment. Neill Franklin has served as the executive director of Law Enforcement Action Partnership (LEAP), which advocates for the regulation and control of drugs, and a law enforcement approach that defends human rights and views drug misusers as persons in need of treatment as opposed to punishment since 2010. He is a 34-year law enforcement veteran of the Maryland State Police and the Baltimore Police Department. Early in his career, Neill served as a narcotics agent with the Maryland State police. His steadfast belief in fighting the drug war was changed first by the Mayor of Baltimore who declared that the drug war was not working; it was counter-productive and created excessive violence. Then a short time later, a close friend was killed in Washington, DC while making a drug deal as an undercover agent.