Retired Superior Court Judge Martin L. Haines served twelve years as a judge of the New Jersey Superior Court. Drugs and the war on drugs have been compelling subjects of his concern. "The 'war' targets drug growers, sellers, buyers and users. Its chief weapon is the criminal law, vigorously enforced by vast numbers of state and federal agents, police and prosecutors. It has been a very successful war - gradually destroying our courts, our cities, our budgets, our morals, and other countries. It has failed in one respect only: it has had no inhibiting effect upon the traffic in drugs. Indeed, that traffic, as a direct result of our criminal laws, has increased. It is time to consider some form of legalization."

Judge Haines believes the war on drugs "can be reversed only by a combination of re-educating the public and honest talk on the part of judicial and other officials." In his public presentations for LEAP, Judge Haines offers a far-ranging and comprehensive critique of the drug war, tracing the failure of punitive anti-drug policies, and providing forceful arguments for rethinking those failed policies. He points out the increase in various categories of drug use following their criminalization, and cites statistics in other countries showing much lower rates of arrest and drug-related health problems with more tolerant approaches.

Martin L. Haines has served as the President of the New Jersey State Bar Association, Chair of the Board of Bar Examiners, and Co-chair of the Bar's Judicial Administration Committee. He writes newspaper columns dealing with legal issues for the Asbury Park Press, the Burlington County Times, the New Jersey Law Journal and the Philadelphia Inquirer. He taught judicial administration at Rutgers Law School in Camden, New Jersey, served as Chair of the Governor's Welfare Committee, Trustee for the ACLU-NJ, counsel to the Burlington County Memorial Hospital and as a member of the Mount Holly Township Council.