NCJ Number
204650
Date Published
November 2001
Length
15 pages
Annotation
This report presents the results of an intake study conducted in St. Mary’s County, MD, in which urinalysis monitoring was conducted with juvenile offenders processed by the Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ).
Abstract
The Intake Study was part of the Juvenile Offender Population Urinalysis Study (OPUS), which was implemented as a juvenile offender urinalysis monitoring program in June 1998 by the Center for Substance Abuse Research. The Intake Study interviewed and obtained urine specimens from juvenile offenders assessed in DJJ county offices with the goal of monitoring changes in drug use and identifying emerging trends in drug use among juvenile offenders. Participants in the St. Mary’s County Intake Study were 57 juvenile offenders who participated in 10 to 15 minute, semi-structured interviews in which they provided information about drug use among their peers and in their communities. Voluntary and anonymous urine specimens were collected from 50 of the participants and were screened for 10 drugs: amphetamines, barbiturates, benzodiazepines, cocaine, marijuana, methadone, methaqualone, opiates, phencyclidine (PCP), and propoxyphene. Results revealed that 26 percent of the participants who provided a urine specimen tested positive for at least one drug; of these participants, 31 percent were male and 17 percent were female. Marijuana was considered the easiest drug to obtain by the participants and 20 percent tested positive for the drug. Many of the participants expressed feelings of ambivalence about marijuana use, although most of the participants considered it a major problem because of its prevalence among adolescents. Other drugs considered easily obtainable included MDMA, powder and crack cocaine, LSD, and prescription drugs. Finally, the report offers a comparison of urinalysis results across the 12 OPUS intake sites in Maryland. Tables, figures