ELON, N.C. — The man who once lead the war on drugs, as the head of the DEA in New York, is now an outspoken critic of that crackdown. After leading the so called “war on drugs”, Stutman now says putting drug addicts in prison is a mistake.

Bob Stutman travels the country speaking to kids, doctors and drug counselors. Stutman spoke at a symposium titled, ‘Prevention is the Answer’ held on the campus of Elon University. He tells WXII 12 News many parents would be surprised to learn their kids biggest risk of opioids comes from sports injuries and wisdom teeth when the doctor prescribes drugs such as Vicodin.