Since 1981, the number of persons charged with drinking while intoxicated or arrested for possession of illegal drugs has declined steadily. Alcohol use is cited more frequently by victims of wife abuse than use of any other type of drug (29 percent versus 1 percent). Statistics show that wife abuse victims generally sustain more serious injuries when alcohol use is involved. Among persons accused of murder in 1991 and 1992 who were known to be substance abusers, 66 percent had used alcohol, 27 percent had consumed some combination of alcohol and other drugs, and 7 percent had used other drugs alone. Fifty-two percent of male inmates in a recent survey reported being under the influence of a substance when committing at least one crime on their current sentence; 44 percent had consumed only alcohol, 29 percent only other drugs, and 27 percent a combination of alcohol and other drugs. 4 tables, 5 figures, 8 notes, and 14 references