NCJ Number
155415
Date Published
1995
Length
32 pages
Annotation
In the spring of 1994, researchers at the Center for Substance Abuse Research at the University of Maryland surveyed 1,018 households on a variety of substance abuse issues, including drug abuse trends, drug sales in one's neighborhood, decriminalization of marijuana, needle exchange programs, punishment for first-time offenders, and resource allocation in the war against drugs.
Abstract
The results showed that 66 percent of respondents believed that cocaine and crack use was increasing in Maryland, but only 39 percent believed those drugs were being sold in their neighborhoods. Twenty-two percent of respondents believed that adults should legally be able to possess small amounts of marijuana for personal use. Fifty-five percent of respondents favored setting up needle exchange programs as part of an HIV prevention effort. Nearly 60 percent of respondents believed that first-time drug offenders should be sentenced to a treatment program; 30 percent favored a combination of jail and treatment. The largest proportion of respondents polled -- 39 percent -- believed that more resources should be allocated to drug education and prevention programs. 12 figures, 1 table, and 1 appendix