ADDICT

Any individual who habitually uses any narcotic drug so as to endanger the public morals, health, safety, or welfare, or who is so drawn to the use of such narcotic drugs as to have lost the power of self-control with reference to his or her drug use.

Addiction to narcotics is not a crime in itself, but that does not excuse violation of related statutes. It may be an offense to be under the influence of an illegal drug in a public place, even though being an addict is not illegal. While such a statute is intended to protect society from the dangers of drug abuse and the antisocial

conduct of drug abusers, it generally is not necessary for conviction to prove that the defendant was disturbing the peace when arrested.

cross-references

Drugs and Narcotics.

ad·dict / ˈadikt/ • n. a person who is addicted to a particular substance, typically an illegal drug. ∎  inf. an enthusiastic devotee of a specified thing or activity: a crossword-puzzle addict.

addict devote or apply habitually. XVI. At first and still mainly in pp. addicted, which superseded †addict (XVI) — L. addictus, pp. of addīcere, f. AD- + dīcere appoint, allot (see DICTION).
Hence addict sb. XX.