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Enforcement was largely in the hands of the [[Internal Revenue Service]], which is why agents of the still-extant [[Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms]] are still called "revenuers" today. Arguably the most famous "revenuers" of all time were [[Eliot Ness]], who operated in [[Chicago]], [[Illinois]], and the team of [[Isadore Einstein and Moe Smith]] in [[New York City]].<ref name=DH/> These were the most dedicated of the 2500 "Prohibition agents" who enforced the law at the height of federal enforcement efforts. Sadly, these men operated on a shoestring national budget ($5 million US at first, later increased to $300 million) and were vastly outmatched in numbers and resources. Worse yet, many politicians still partook of intoxicating liquor themselves, leading to a widespread perception of people in authority as hypocritical.

Enforcement was largely in the hands of the [[Internal Revenue Service]], which is why agents of the still-extant [[Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms]] are still called "revenuers" today. Arguably the most famous "revenuers" of all time were [[Eliot Ness]], who operated in [[Chicago]], [[Illinois]], and the team of [[Isadore Einstein and Moe Smith]] in [[New York City]].<ref name=DH/> These were the most dedicated of the 2500 "Prohibition agents" who enforced the law at the height of federal enforcement efforts. Sadly, these men operated on a shoestring national budget ($5 million US at first, later increased to $300 million) and were vastly outmatched in numbers and resources. Worse yet, many politicians still partook of intoxicating liquor themselves, leading to a widespread perception of people in authority as hypocritical.

The latter part of the thirteen years of prohibition saw the rise of [[organized crime|organized criminal gangs]] in virtually every city in the country, and the manufacture of liquor on a small scale at millions of locations.<ref name=WeWantBeer>Miller, Carl H. (2000), [http://www.beerhistory.com/library/holdings/prohibition_1.shtml We Want Beer], retrieved April 7, 2007 from BeerHistory.com</ref> This was the era of "speakeasies" (liquor-selling establishments that admitted people by invitation only and on the speaking of a [[password]])<ref name=Hanson>Hanson, David J., [http://www2.potsdam.edu/hansondj/FunFacts/Prohibition.html Prohibition: the Noble Experiment], SUNY-Potsdam, Potsdam, NY (retrieved April 7, 2007)</ref> and of a general contempt for the law. [[Al Capone]], the most famous "gangster" in US history, built a vast and sprawling empire on the profits from the distribution of illicit liquor. (Ultimately the IRS obtained evidence of tax evasion against him, and upon conviction on that charge he was sent to [[Alcatraz]] Prison in [[San Francisco]] Bay.)

The latter part of the thirteen years of prohibition saw the rise of [[organized crime|organized criminal gangs]] in virtually every city in the country, and the manufacture of liquor on a small scale at millions of locations.<ref name=WeWantBeer>Miller, Carl H. (2000), [http://www.beerhistory.com/library/holdings/prohibition_1.shtml We Want Beer], retrieved April 7, 2007 from BeerHistory.com</ref> This was the era of "[[speakeasy|speakeasies]]" (liquor-selling establishments that admitted people by invitation only and on the speaking of a [[password]]),<ref name=Hanson>Hanson, David J., [http://www2.potsdam.edu/hansondj/FunFacts/Prohibition.html Prohibition: the Noble Experiment], SUNY-Potsdam, Potsdam, NY (retrieved April 7, 2007)</ref> "[[bootlegger]]s" (those who smuggled [[alcoholic drinks]] either for their own consumption or for sale), and of a general contempt for the law. [[Al Capone]], the most famous "gangster" in US history, built a vast and sprawling empire on the profits from the distribution of illicit liquor. (Ultimately the IRS obtained evidence of tax evasion against him, and upon conviction on that charge he was sent to [[Alcatraz]] Prison in [[San Francisco]] Bay.)

The original Volstead Act provided a medical exception to prohibition, in that a person could have a doctor prescribe alcohol to him.<ref name=RxEx>[http://www.sfgenealogy.com/sanmateo/history/smpro26.htm A 1926 Alcohol Prescription Slip] in the History Archive of San Mateo County</ref> Many willing doctors wrote prescriptions, often on highly dubious premises.<ref name=About>Rosenberg, Jennifer, [http://history1900s.about.com/od/1920s/p/prohibition.htm Prohibition], About.com (Retrieved April 7, 2007)</ref>

The original Volstead Act provided a medical exception to prohibition, in that a person could have a doctor prescribe alcohol to him.<ref name=RxEx>[http://www.sfgenealogy.com/sanmateo/history/smpro26.htm A 1926 Alcohol Prescription Slip] in the History Archive of San Mateo County</ref> Many willing doctors wrote prescriptions, often on highly dubious premises.<ref name=About>Rosenberg, Jennifer, [http://history1900s.about.com/od/1920s/p/prohibition.htm Prohibition], About.com (Retrieved April 7, 2007)</ref>