The Jones Act

From 1920 to 1929, the consumption of alcohol was outlawed in the United States. The Eighteenth Amendment went into effect in 1920, banning the production, importation, and sale of alcoholic beverages in the United States. That amendment immediately produced a whole new group of criminals…those who would not comply with the new law that they felt was unconstitutional. Whether it was or whether it wasn’t, made no difference. They would not comply. Alcohol went “underground” in more ways than one.

From 1920 to 1929, the Eighteenth Amendment was the law of the land concerning alcohol. Then on March 2, 1929, the Jones Act was signed into law by President Calvin Coolidge. It was effectively the last gasp of Prohibition. The Jones Act strengthened the federal penalties for the bootlegging of alcohol. This, the last act, caused the country to reject Prohibition within five years, and to repeal the Eighteenth Amendment. Prohibition was never particularly popular across the nation and when the people slowly realized that it had other ramifications, it rapidly fell by the wayside. The biggest problem with Prohibition was that it didn’t stop the public’s demand for alcohol. Oh, consumption did drop some, but it remained substantial, nevertheless, and in order to fill this now criminal demand, an entire criminal infrastructure was created virtually overnight.

Of course, alcohol was now more expensive, and it brought in enormous amounts of money. Illegal trafficking was highly profitable and helped established organized crime. Crime syndicates dominated the major cities. Bribery was running rampant, fueled by those who could afford to bribe officials throughout the criminal justice system. Law enforcement became corrupt, and the federal government became a major player in policing and prosecuting law breakers for the first time.

Prohibition did nothing to really stop alcohol consumption but rather caused a major breakdown in the social fabric because of its effect on the national psyche. With so many of the people brazenly ignoring the law, an atmosphere of cynicism and hypocrisy was established. Finally repealed the Eighteenth Amendment and Prohibition were widely viewed as a total failure. All that effectively ended with the Jones Act on March 2, 1929.