NCJ Number
158385
Journal
Journal of Psychedelic Drugs Volume: 10 Issue: 3 Dated: (July-September 1978) Pages: 171-192
Date Published
1978
Length
22 pages
Annotation
The relationship between drug use and crime is examined, based on a review of the literature and an analysis of the report called Drug Use and Crime published in 1976 and issued by a group sponsored by the National Institute on Drug Abuse.
Abstract
The analysis focused on four issues: (1) the relationship between drug consumption and the commission of criminal acts, (2) the impact of supply on consumption and related crime patterns, (3) the impact of treatment on drug- related crimes, and (4) the impacts of drug laws. Results revealed that knowledge of the relationship between drugs and crime is limited. Convincing data indicate that drug users, at least opiate addicts, commit a significant amount of nondrug crime, mainly of an income-generating nature. Furthermore, their lives are pervasively associated with antisocial activities, including drug distribution and predatory crime. Findings also indicate that under our prevailing system of criminalization of drug use, society forces addicts to practice income-generating criminal behaviors and that addicts and other drug users display generalized deviant behavior independent of drug use. In addition, treatment reduces the pressure for committing crime but in an oblique manner. Finally, the drug laws are relatively ineffective in achieving their main stated goal of reducing drug use in the community. Notes and 105 references