NCJ Number
70808
Journal
Drug Forum Volume: 5 Issue: 3 Dated: (1976-1977) Pages: 211-224
Date Published
1977
Length
14 pages
Annotation
Results are reported from a New York study that examined the arrest rates of narcotic addicts 1 year prior to and 1 year after admission to the State Drug Abuse Control Commission (DACC) treatment program.
Abstract
A previous study of a restricted sample of DACC clients showed an increase in the arrest rates of the subjects 1 year prior to entering the program. The current study expanded the scope of the sample in order to determine if the increase in arrests is a more general phenomenon. The study sample was composed of six cohorts of male addicts certified to DACC. The first five cohorts were admitted in fiscal 1971 (April 1, 1970-March 31, 1971). All were drawn from the following populations: (1) 21-year-old civil certificands who used drugs at least 3 years (N=82), (2) 22-year-old civil certificands who used drugs at least 3 years (N=80), (3) 23-year-old criminal certificands who used drugs at least 5 years (N=98), (4) 24-year-old civil certificands who used drugs at least 5 years (N=95), (5) 25-year-old criminal certificands who used drugs at least 5 years (N=95), and (6) a random sample of criminal and civil certificands admitted since 1966 (N=195). Arrests were categorized according to person crimes, property crimes, and drug offenses. The first analysis of the data was the computation of yearly total arrest rates for each cohort. The second analysis was a computation of the total percentage of persons in each cohort who were arrested for each year during the specific periods. A subsample of addicts was selected from the random sample (N=88), and the subjects' arrest rates 1 year before admission and 1 year after were traced. Results indicate that in the sample studied arrest rates did significantly increase in the year prior to treatment, while they decreased in the year after treatment. Results suggest that the program interceded at a point in the addict's career when desperation had set in. The program apparently helped to lessen the disruptive behavior. Given the chronic nature of drug addiction, however, it is important to examine the effects of treatment over the long term to determine if cycles of drug use have been broken.