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Trends in Drug Use and Crime and Their Relationship in an Arrested Population

NCJ Number
155050
Journal
American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse Volume: 4 Issue: 3 Dated: (1977) Pages: 413-429
Author(s)
N J Kozel; R L DuPont
Date Published
1977
Length
17 pages
Annotation
This analysis used data obtained from the District of Columbia Superior Court on trends in drug use and criminal charges of 44,223 consecutive admissions to the court's lock-up between December 1971 and April 1975.
Abstract
The findings indicated that while the number of admissions to the lock-up had been relatively stable over time, the percentage of drug-positive urine tests among detainees showed an overall decline over the course of the study. Two-thirds of all detainees identified as drug-positive were heroin users. The proportion of detainees who were heroin users declined between 1972 and the beginning of 1974, but increased by 50 percent by 1975. The analysis illustrated a dramatic increase in the use of phenmetrazine among Superior Court admissions and an equally dramatic decline in the use of methamphetamine. Use of both these substances has been linked to heroin use. The study revealed that drug-using persons apprehended and incarcerated at the D.C. Superior Court were slightly less likely to be charged with violent, serious crimes. Codeine and barbiturates were associated with a higher frequency of violence than other drugs. Cocaine users were not often charged with major violent crimes. 6 tables, 2 figures, and 10 references

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