Actor/comedian Russell Brand has been sober for nearly ten years.
But before the 36-year-old "Get Him To The Greek" star was on the straight and narrow, he was arrested "roughly" 12 times during his own struggle with drugs. As a result, Brand now believes that other addicts shouldn't be sent to prison—but to a rehab facility.
So Brand, dressed in a tank top with holes in it and large necklace of crosses, addressed the British Parliament 's Home Affairs Committee today and gave a testimony as to why he believes drug abusers should get treatment.
"It is something I consider to be an illness, and therefore more of a health matter than a criminal or judicial matter. It is more important that we regard people suffering from addiction with compassion and there is a pragmatic rather than a symbolic approach to treating it," he told the committee.
Brand continued: "Addicts who get clean one day at a time through abstinence-based recovery generally stop committing crime. That's better for victims, that's better for the addicts, that's better for society."
Brand, who was animated and well spoken, even quoted slain rapper Tupac Shakur during his testimony.
Watch below.
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