Kevin Sabet

Kevin Abraham Sabet
Kevin Sabet, speaking at the New Yorker Magazine Festival, 2014
Born	1979 Ft. Wayne, Indiana
Residence	Washington, DC and Cambridge, MA
Citizenship	American
Nationality	U.S.
Fields	drug policy, public policy, journalism
Institutions	The White House, ONDCP University of Florida, SAM
Alma mater	University of California, Berkeley Oxford University
Doctoral advisor	George Smith
Other academic advisors	Bruce Cain William "Sandy" Muir
Known for	A "Third Way" in Drug Policy, A "smart approach to marijuana policy," "Big Marijuana"
Influences	David F. Musto Robert L. DuPont
Notable awards	Marshall Scholarship, Nils Bejerot Award for Global Drug Prevention, John P. McGovern Award

Kevin Abraham Sabet, also known as Kevin Sabet, (born February 20, 1979) is an assistant professor of psychiatry and Director of the Drug Policy Institute at the University of Florida. With Patrick J. Kennedy, he co-founded Smart Approaches to Marijuana in January 2013.

He is also the author of numerous articles and monographs including the book "Reefer Sanity: Seven Great Myths About Marijuana."

Sabet is a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley and Oxford University, where he received his Doctorate in social policy as a Marshall Scholar. He is an opponent of drug legalization and has spoken on behalf of the Obama Administration on the subject. After leaving ONDCP after 2.5 years, he became a consultant and professor. In January 2013, Rolling Stone called him "Legalization Enemy #1" ahead of the US Drug Czar and the DEA Administrator.

Kevin Sabet is the president of Smart Approaches to Marijuana (SAM). He is a regular contributor to TV and print media and a blogger for the Huffington Post.

Sabet has worked with NIDA Director Alan Leshner on MDMA education efforts, and has had testimony entered on the official Congressional record. He was a key witness in two marijuana hearings after his work in the Obama Administration.

He has written on the need for prevention, treatment, and enforcement to guide drug policy, although he has also argued for abolishing severe sentencing guidelines, like mandatory minimum laws. His articles have been published in newspapers, such as The Washington Post and The New York Times. He has argued for removing criminal penalties for low-level marijuana use but has opposed legalization.