NCJ Number
168764
Journal
The Advocate Volume: 18 Issue: 1 Dated: (January 1996) Pages: 3-10
Date Published
1996
Length
8 pages
Annotation
The war on drugs, with its primary funding emphasis on law enforcement and lack of concomitant funding emphasis on treatment and the defense of indigents, has created alarming problems for jails and prisons in the United States as a whole and in Kentucky specifically.
Abstract
In 1991, the Bureau of Justice Statistics reported 67 percent of arrestees in 21 major U.S. cities tested positive for some type of drug, including cocaine, opiates, marijuana, phencyclidine (PCP), methadone, benzodiazepine (Valium), methaqualone (Quaalude), propoxyphene (Darvon), barbiturates, and amphetamines. Statistical reports published by the Kentucky State Police indicated the number of persons arrested for drug offenses increased by 88 percent between 1987 and 1993; 45 percent of the 225,989 arrests in 1993 were for drug and alcohol offenses. The increased number of drug arrests has profound implications for jails and prisons. The prison population in the United States has more than tripled since 1975, creating a funding crisis for Federal, State, and local governments. Kentucky Department of Corrections data show the cost of keeping a person in jail or prison for a year is $13,613. Kentucky's prison population has nearly doubled over the past 6 years, rising from 5,221 in 1987 to 10,109 in 1993. Further, the number of drug offenders committed to Kentucky prisons has more than quadrupled over the same period, increasing from 285 in 1987 to 1,452 in 1993. The number of State prisoners committed to serve prison sentences in Kentucky's county jails continues to be a serious problem. In addition, the increase in drug offense arrests from 9,213 in 1987 to 17,349 in 1993 has placed a severe strain on Kentucky's public defender system. This is especially true in multiple defendant drug cases resulting from drug sweeps. Detailed data are provided on drug arrests and drug offenders in Kentucky, and a chart is included that specifies penalties by drug offense type. 1 table and 4 figures