Prior drug use by offenders

Probationers | Jail inmates | State and Federal prison inmates

Probationers

In 1995 the first national survey of adults on probation reported --

• nearly 70% of probationers reported past drug use
• 32% said they were using illegal drugs in the month before their offense.

Source: BJS, Substance Abuse and Treatment of Adults on Probation, 1995, NCJ 166611, March 1998.

Two-thirds of Driving While Intoxicated (DWI) offenders on probation reported using drugs in the past. Among DWI probationers, marijuana (65%) and stimulants (29%) were the most commonly used drugs. Seventeen percent of those on probation reported drug use in the month prior to arrest.

Among DWI offenders, the most commonly reported experience associated with drug use was domestic disputes:

• 19% of probationers said they had arguments with their family, friends, spouse, or boyfriend/girlfriend while under the influence of drugs.
• About 1 in 10 of those on probation for DWI had been arrested or held in a police station as a result of their drug use.
• 3% of those on probation had lost a job because of their drug use.
• 8% of those on probation said they had been in a physical fight while under the influence of drugs.
  
  Source: BJS, DWI Offenders under Correctional Supervision, NCJ 172212, June 1999.
  

Nearly 40% of mentally ill probationers and 30% of other probationers reported using drugs in the month before their offense.

Source: BJS, Mental Health and Treatment and Inmates and Probationers, NCJ 174463, July 1999.

Jail inmates

Of those inmates held in local jails, only convicted offenders were asked if they had used drugs in the time leading up to their current offense. In 1996, 55% of convicted jail inmates reported they had used illegal drugs during the month before their offense, up from 44% in 1989. Use of marijuana in the month before the offense increased from 28% to 37% and of stimulants from 5% to 10%. Reported cocaine or crack use was stable at about 24%.

Half of inmates in both 1989 and 1996 reported trying cocaine. Overall, 82% of all jail inmates in 1996 said they had ever used an illegal drug, up from 78% in 1989. A higher percentage of jail inmates in 1996 than in 1989 reported ever using for every other type of drug:

• marijuana rose from 71% to 78%;
• stimulants (amphetamine and methamphetamine) from 22% to 34%;
• hallucinogens, including LSD and PCP, from 24% to 32%;
• depressants, including Quaalude, barbiturates, and tranquilizers without a doctor's prescription, from 21% to 30%; and
• heroin or other opiates from 19% to 24%.
  
  Source: BJS, Profile of Jail Inmates, 1996, NCJ 164620, April 1998.

Over three-quarters of DWI offenders in jail reported using drugs in the past. Among jail inmates held for DWI, marijuana (73%) and cocaine-based drugs including crack (41%) were the most commonly used drugs. Thirty percent of those in jail reported drug use in the month prior to arrest.

Domestic disputes were also one of the most commonly reported experiences associated with drug use:

• 25% of jail inmates said they had arguments with their family, friends, spouse, or boyfriend/girlfriend while under the influence of drugs.
• Nearly 1 in 5 of those in jail for DWI had been arrested or held in a police station as a result of their drug use.
• About 10% of DWI offenders in jail had lost a job because of their drug use.
• About 15% of jail inmates said they had been in a physical fight while under the influence of drugs.
  
  Source: BJS, DWI Offenders under Correctional Supervision,
  NCJ 172212, June 1999.

Fifty-eight percent of mentally ill jail inmates and 47% of other jail inmates were using drugs in the month before the offense.

Source: BJS, Mental Health and Treatment and Inmates and Probationers, NCJ 174463, July 1999.

In local jails, veterans (81%) reported levels of prior drug use similar to nonveterans (83%), but lower levels (44%) of drug use in the month prior to the offense than nonveterans (50%) in 1997.

Source: BJS, Veterans in Prison or Jail, NCJ 178888, January 2000. 

State and Federal prison inmates

In the 1997 Survey of Inmates in State and Federal Correctional Facilities, over 570,000 of the Nation's prisoners (51%) reported the use of alcohol or drugs while committing their offense.

In 1991, 60% of Federal prisoners reported prior drug use, compared to 79% of State prisoners. In 1997 this gap in prior drug use was narrowed, as the percentage of Federal inmates reporting past drug use rose to 73%, compared to 83% of State inmates. This increase was mostly due to a rise in the percentage of Federal prisoners reporting prior use of marijuana (from 53% in 1991 to 65% in 1997) and cocaine-based drugs (from 37% in 1991 to 45% in 1997).

Most other drug types showed modest increases over this period. A fifth of Federal prisoners had used stimulants and hallucinogens, followed by depressants and opiates, including heroin (both 11%). About 1 in 12 Federal prisoners reported the prior use of inhalants.

Although the proportion of Federal prisoners held for drug offenses rose from 58% in 1991 to 63% in 1997, the percentage of all Federal inmates who reported using drugs in the month before the offense rose more dramatically from 32% to 45%.

The proportion of State prison inmates reporting the past use of cocaine or crack remained stable between 1991 and 1997 --

• Marijuana (77%) use had increased slightly since 1991 (74%), and remained the most commonly used drug.
• Past use of cocaine-based drugs remained unchanged at 49% since 1991.
• Twenty percent of all inmates reported the past use of intravenous drugs, down from 25% in 1991.

Nineteen percent of State inmates told interviewers that they had been physically or sexually abused before their current offense. For State prisoners reporting prior abuse, 89% had ever used illegal drugs: 71% of the men and 80% of the women had used them regularly. Of those not reporting prior abuse, 82% had used illegal drugs: 68% of the men and 65% of the women had used them regularly.

Illegal drug use was more common among abused State prison inmates than among those who said they were not abused. An estimated 71% of abused men and 80% of abused women had used illegal drugs regularly, compared to 68% of men and 65% of women who had not been abused.

About 60% of mentally ill State prisoners and 51% of other inmates were using drugs in the month before their offense.

Source: BJS, Mental Health and Treatment and Inmates and Probationers, NCJ 174463, July 1999.

In 1997 a majority of parents in State prison reported some type of prior drug use --

• 85% reported any past drug use
  
• 58% reported use in the month before the current offense.

Nonparents in State prison reported slightly lower levels of prior drug use --

• 80% reported any past drug use
  
• 55% reported use in the month before the current offense.

In 1997 mothers in State prison were more likely than fathers to report drug use in the month before their offense: 65% for mothers and 58% for fathers. Cocaine/crack was the most common drug used: 45% for mothers and 21% for fathers.

Nearly half of parents in Federal prison reported using drugs in the month before their offense and 3 in 4 had ever used drugs. Nearly a quarter of parents in Federal prison were under the influence of drugs when committing their offense. Aside from marijuana use (higher among fathers), mothers and fathers in Federal prison reported similar drug use histories.

Source: BJS, Incarcerated Parents and Their Children, NCJ 182335, August 2000.

79% of veterans in State prison reported prior drug use during their military service.

Vietnam-era veterans varied little from other veterans in State prison concerning prior drug abuse --

• 77% of Vietnam-era veterans compared to 80% of other veterans reported ever using drugs.
  
• 41% of Vietnam-era veterans compared to 47% of other veterans used drugs in the month before the offense.

Source: BJS, Veterans in Prison or Jail, NCJ 178888, January 2000.

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