If you digest it into a catch-phrase, the first reason was the ongoing battle between those who advocated the legalisation of recreational drugs, and a government hell-bent on enforcing those laws prohibiting the casual use of such substances. To the press, it was S*x, Drugs & Rock'n'Roll. To those of us who came of age during the 1960s, there was no question that the use of narcotics was a personal decision intrinsically linked to the constitutional right to privacy, and any intrusion into that lifestyle was simply unjust. 

For yours truly, The first reason I participated in the laundering of narcotics profits was, plain & simple, that I then had an absolute belief that the regulation of vice:

• Would never succeed; it is easier to stop the rain, as one cannot regulate morality.
• Will alienate a large portion of the population.
• Will be prohibitively expensive. 
• Will spawn a  growing system of agencies whose sole function is the control of an uncontrollable problem.
• Will criminalise the conduct of large numbers of otherwise law-abiding members of your population.

I moved cash profits for drug traffickers due to a strong belief that the counter-drug laws, like America's failed Prohibition laws of an earlier era, were wrong and ought to be repealed. Whilst money launderers today are, by and large, looking for easy money through high-risk criminal conduct, I was on a mission: to do my part to enlarge the drug trafficking structure through moving the proceeds of crime to safe harbours offshore.

I also participated in the drug-fueled haze that surrounded organised crime activities at the time; social events, dinners and parties, whether taking place in the US or overseas, always involved some form of recreational drugs, and as I have said, I was not merely their part-time lawyer, but a regular social participant immersed in the life-style and culture. Lawyer by day, co-conspirator and hard-core partying advisor by night. At times, I felt I was never off duty; some lawyers complain when social contacts or clients solicit advice in after-hours situations. I was on call 24-7 for problems, brainstorms, emerging threats, half-baked investment concepts, and, of course, late-night arrests.  

Miami then was awash in marijuana & cocaine. After all, it was the port of entry for drugs from Colombia, Peru, Bolivia & Jamaica. There was also LSD and, albeit rarely, opium. Add it all up and throw in copious amounts of alcohol and you have a potent means of self-medication for anyone in a high-stress job, be it legal or illegal. When you worry about going to prison for life, or getting killed, it works in the short-term.

Eventually, even I saw the potential for addiction, and backed off heavy use. I was later to drop out of the drug culture entirely, seeing as how it was impairing my efficiency. After all, if you stay up all night partying, getting up to move someone's illicit cash the next day is tough, though you will do it.

Then, what we knew as freebase, perhaps the most psychologically addicting drug I've ever used, turned into crack, for inner-city users, I saw the drug use as a one-way ticket to the cemetery. Of course, there were horror stories. A dead client, whose girlfriend called, hysterical, from a hotel room in Belize, where she awoke to find him blue and expired from an overdose. The beauty who freebased constantly, later contracted a terminal illness that promised a slow death. I stopped using drugs entirely and concentrated on my work.  

Unfortunately, my naive good intentions, seeking decriminalisation of drugs for personal use by responsible, gainfully employed, educated citizens, was misplaced. Today, statistics show that most arrested violent criminals have some illegal drug in their bloodstream. Drug use has fueled crime, plain and simple. No wonder Miami fell out of its love affair with drugs.

The second reason was my total discontent with and distrust of our government, whose elected officials sent me and too many other to faraway places to kill or be killed in the global conflicts that never seem to end. I remembered watching all those French movies from my college days, when I could never quite understand the post-war French malaise. Older and wiser, I now know it was due to their nation's brutal experiences in Algeria and Indochina.

I perceived America, then under the Reagan administration, as being out of touch with the mainstream, and far too conservative for my taste. When you don't trust your country's institutions, it's much easier to break the law, even when you yourself are supposed to be a part of the legal system. Is that illogical? I suppose it is.

So there you have it; a potent recipe for trouble; a lawyer with an anti-social attitude, and no wife or children to cause him to walk the straight and narrow path. I should consider myself lucky to be here after all that. The question having been answered, let us return to the unfolding story.

Next Week:  A major client falls from grace, and into the hands of the DEA, and we get around to my typical workday.