But people who won't stop gambling, which is not illegal, often turn to crime to support their habit. I agree that some addiction-related crime exists because the addiction is illegal, but that's not the sole cause. But, for example, heroin addicts don't (just) steal needles, they steal other stuff to pawn in order to pay for their next fix. You might be able to argue that legalizing it would lower the price and help alleviate that problem, but there's some sort of evidence in the fact that that sort of crime happens at all. (This is not intended to speak towards the crime associated with the distribution side.)