NCJ Number
212753
Date Published
July 2005
Length
15 pages
Annotation
This report presents findings from the February through June 2005 Juvenile Offender Population Urinalysis Screening Program (OPUS) Detention Study, a juvenile offender urinalysis monitoring program in Maryland.
Abstract
In June 1998, the Juvenile OPUS Study began urinalysis monitoring of the juveniles processed by the Department of Juvenile Services (DJS). The goal of the study was to monitor emerging trends and changes in the drug use patterns among the juvenile offender population. The February through June 2005 Detention Study involved 363 juveniles from 8 Department of Juvenile Services (DJS) detention facilities. Participants were youth who had been admitted to the juvenile facilities within the past 72 hours and agreed to provide a urine specimen, which was screened for the presence of seven drugs. Urinalysis results indicated that 50 percent of the youths tested positive for at least one drug, most frequently marijuana. Cocaine was present in 3 percent of juvenile samples, while opiates, oxycodone, and PCP were only detected in 1 percent of the cases. Correlates of testing positive for drugs are presented and include the finding that 51 percent of juveniles arrested for property offenses tested positive for any drug. Tables, figure, footnotes