24. Federal Authorities Shrugged Off the Deaths Caused by Their Poisoned Alcohol
Despite the furor, Prohibition’s enforcers continued to poison industrial alcohol, and the resultant deaths continued to pile up. The New York Times archives from 1927 to 1933 contain many headlines about the resultant damage. Not only deaths, but also blindness, hallucinations, and other side effects that sent poisoned drinkers to emergency rooms and left many with permanent damage to their health. June 20th, 1927: Three Die From Alcohol; February 28th, 1929: Alcohol Deaths Show Steady Rise; August 23rd, 1930: Alcohol Deaths Up 300% Since 1920; August 17th, 1932: Dies After Drinking Wood Alcohol. When large-scale fatalities occurred, Prohibition agents shrugged it off.
In 1928, over thirty people died from alcohol poisoning in a single incident in Manhattan, but federal authorities declared that there was nothing they could do. A federal grand jury stated that industrial alcohol is not a beverage, but a recognized poison whose use and sale are regulated by the state, not federal laws. As such, state authorities should look into its sale and improper use. As humorist Will Rogers quipped: “Governments used to murder by the bullets only. Now it’s by the quarts“. All in all, an estimated 10,000 people or more died from alcohol poisoning during Prohibition, and many more suffered serious damage to their health. The carnage finally ended with the end of Prohibition, when people regained access to regular booze, and thus no longer had to gamble with denatured industrial alcohol.
