Timothy L. Tyler

Timothy Leonard Tyler (born 1968) is an American who was sentenced to life in prison for possession and distribution of LSD (or "acid") under the federal three-strikes law.

Tyler resumed touring with the Grateful Dead and sent LSD to a friend who was arrested for marijuana possession who turned into a confidential informant for the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

According to the memo prepared by his probation officer, he netted about $3,000 from "a very loosely woven conspiracy" that involved selling acid to "friends, family and business acquaintances".

[1][2] Under the law's stipulations, the judge was not able to consider Tyler's drug addiction, lack of violent conduct, mental health issues, or youth when determining his sentence.

[1][2] In 2013, Senator Rand Paul highlighted Tyler's case, writing that he "should have been punished for selling drugs, but he shouldn’t have to spend the rest of his life in prison for it.

Today, Timothy is 45 and will likely spend the rest of his life behind bars, not because a judge thought it was a proper punishment, but because an arbitrary federal law demanded it.