The argument is made, using a local case study, that many drug users in the 1980's experienced the strong arm of the law because of the structure of treatment programs and court sentencing philosophies and practices. The 1991 Criminal Justice Act (CJA) may have only a limited impact on the problems posed for the criminal justice system by users of Class A drugs due to dependency, motivation, and culpability issues. The CJA has substantially revised sentencing powers and principles predicated on two justice themes, just deserts and punishment in the community. The Act is likely to have a profound impact on courts, prisons, the probation service, and offenders, particularly because it pursues the pragmatic harm reduction approach to drug treatment over just deserts and punishment. In addition, the CJA abandons a restrictive clinical definition of drug dependency for a common sense notion of the propensity to misuse drugs and emphasizes probation services in its approach to drug-related offending. In the reported case study, clients identified as drug users were interviewed. Case files and interviews indicated that offenders caught and convicted for a drug offense frequently sought to distance themselves from the implication that they had a drug problem. A factor influencing disclosure of drug use was the prospect for a good sentencing deal. The disjunction between offender motivation and treatment principles sanctioned by the criminal justice system is considered, and various options for dealing with drug offenders are examined. 40 references and 5 footnotes