Prohibition began on January 6, 1920 when the 18th amendment went into affect. It was a period of time when the United States made it illegal to sell, produce, import, and transport alcoholic beverages. It was a nationwide constitutional ban that was in place from 1920 to 1933. Which many people seem to disagree upon.
Early January 1930’s, before Prohibition ended, was a time when people were getting killed because of alcohol. There were Rum Runners who were people that smuggled alcoholic beverages over water. People in the coast would get the alcohol from the Carribean and other places away from the United States by ship. It was a political whitewash. The people killing rum runners was the Coast Guard. No one got caught up until the end were it kept happening more and more.