Dennis C. Deyo v. United States

Appellant was convicted of the possession and sale of LSD-25 in violation of the 1965 amendments to the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. There is no dispute of the fact that he acted in violation of these statutes. The sole question here raised is their constitutionality.

The amendments are challenged as exceeding the constitutional grant of power to Congress in that the regulation in question is not brought within the ambit of any enumerated constitutional power such as taxation, the declaration of war or the control of interstate and foreign commerce. Specifically, it is claimed that the 1965 Act is unconstitutional in that, as contrasted with acts dealing with other drugs, it makes criminal the sale or possession for sale of LSD without regard to whether the drug has crossed state lines or international boundaries.

The amendments involved relate to “depressant and stimulant drugs.” There is no question but that Congress here has resorted to a wholly new technique for bringing the regulation of drug traffic within the scope of the commerce clause. Through more conventional legislation Congress has sought to control interstate traffic in “dangerous drugs” that are suitable…