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Date: November 22, 2024 Fri

Time: 12:14 pm

Results for drugs and crime

57 results found

Author: Success Works

Title: Tasmania's Drug Mandated Drug Diversion Program: Evaluation Report

Summary: This report evaluates the pilot Court Mandated Drug Diversion Program (CMD) in Tasmania. The goal of the program is to break the drug-crime cycle by involving offenders in treatment and rehabilitation programs and providing alternative pathways for offenders through increasing their access to drug, alcohol, or other welfare services. This evaluation considers the first two months of the pilot program. Data provided by the Tasmanian Department of Justice indicates that in its first year of operation 250 offenders were referred for screening for suitability for the program and 157 offenders commenced the program.

Details: Hobart, Tasmania: Success Works, 2008. 147p.

Source: Internet Resource

Year: 2008

Country: Australia

URL:

Shelf Number: 117577

Keywords:
Alternative to Incarceration
Drug Abuse and Addiction
Drug Abuse Treatment (Tasmania)
Drug Offenders
Drugs and Crime

Author: Rivera, Marny

Title: Alaska Meth Education Project: Process and Outcome Evaluation, 2009

Summary: The Alaska Meth Education (AME) Project is a statewide effort to reduce meth use and availability in Alaska by educating Alaskans about, and preventing youth from trying, meth. The AME Project provides free community education presentations, an anti-meth media campaign. anti-meth summits, and a website and Facebook page which provide information, local resources, and links to their campaign ads. This report evaluates AME Project efforts and is the first to provide information regarding Alaskans’ perceptions of meth, including effects and risks associated with meth use and perceptions regarding the availability and use of meth by young adults in Alaska. Evaluation methods included a survey to evaluate community education presentations; a survey conducted with UAA Justice students exposed to the anti-meth radio advertisements generated by the AME Project; a survey of 10,000 randomly sampled Alaskans; and a process evaluation involving interviews conducted with AME Project statewide advisory committee members.

Details: Anchorage, AK: Justice Center, University of Alaska Anchorage, 2009.

Source: Internet Resource

Year: 2009

Country: United States

URL:

Shelf Number: 119205

Keywords:
Drug Addiction and Abuse
Drugs
Drugs and Crime
Methamphetamine (Alaska)

Author: Japan. National Police Agency. Drugs and Firearms Division

Title: Drug Control in Japan 2009

Summary: This report provides an overview of the drug situation in Japan, including laws to control abused drugs.

Details: Tokyo: National Police Agency, 2009. 13p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 15, 2010 at: http://www.npa.go.jp/english/yakujyu/Drug%20Control%20in%20Japan%202009.pdf

Year: 2009

Country: Japan

URL: http://www.npa.go.jp/english/yakujyu/Drug%20Control%20in%20Japan%202009.pdf

Shelf Number: 119805

Keywords:
Drug Control
Drugs
Drugs and Crime
Organized Crime

Author: United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime

Title: The Global Afghan Opium Trade: A Threat Assessment

Summary: Over the last decade, the global trade in illicit Afghan opiates has been one of the world’s greatest transnational drug and crime threats – with severe consequences for health, governance and security at national, regional and international levels. In Afghanistan and elsewhere, transnational organized crime groups were the main beneficiaries of the US$68 billion trade in 2009, which they supplemented with other forms of crime such as arms trafficking and human smuggling. In 2009, the Afghan Taliban was estimated to have earned around $150 million from the opiate trade, Afghan drug traffickers $2.2 billion, and Afghan farmers $440 million. While the findings suggest that most insurgent elements content themselves with taxing the trade rather than attempting to become active participants, it now appears that some insurgents involve themselves directly in the heroin supply chain, including in the procurement of acetic anhydride. Anti-government elements based in Afghanistan and Pakistan may gain access to only a fraction of the value of Afghan opiate exports, but this is nonetheless enough to support logistics, operations and recruitment. Areas under insurgent influence, such as the border between Iraq and Turkey and the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan, also provide a key competitive advantage for organized crime groups as those areas lie beyond the reach of law enforcement. If global organized crime groups managing the opiate trade pocketed only 10 per cent of the profit, they would have earned at least $7 billion in 2009. All these illicit profits are laundered in one way or another, a process that undermines the vulnerable economies of areas such as the Balkans and Central Asia. Traffickers tend to shift routes and change their modus operandi as law enforcement pressure increases. Traditional methods of land border control may not be sufficient to stem the flow of opiates into destination markets.

Details: Geneva: UNODC, 2011. 162p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 5, 2011 at: http://www.unodc.org/documents/data-and-analysis/Studies/Global_Afghan_Opium_Trade_2011-web.pdf

Year: 2011

Country: Afghanistan

URL: http://www.unodc.org/documents/data-and-analysis/Studies/Global_Afghan_Opium_Trade_2011-web.pdf

Shelf Number: 122312

Keywords:
Drug Trafficking
Drugs and Crime
Heroin
Illegal Drugs
Opium (Afghanistan)
Organized Crime

Author: South Carolina Department of Public Safety, Office of Justice Programs

Title: High Crimes and Misdemeanors: A Five Year Overview of Indicators of Illegal Drug Activity in South Carolina

Summary: High Crimes and Misdemeanors: A Five Year Overview of Indicators of Illegal Drug Activity in South Carolina is the first in what is intended to be a series of ongoing reports, designed to provide basic information about illicit drug activity over a five year period. The bulk of the information presented in the tables, graphs and charts in this publication is based on incident reports submitted to the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) by state and local law enforcement agencies. These reports are edited and reviewed, corrected as needed and compiled to form the basis of the information presented in this report. It is important to note that the information in this report is only as complete and accurate as the information provided to local law enforcement and subsequently submitted to SLED. The nature of illegal drug activity is such that it is difficult, if not impossible, to measure its occurrence with any level of precision. Consumers, suppliers, producers and others involved in illegal drug activity take great pains to conceal their actions, and unlike crimes which involve an individual victim, none of those involved in the crime have any reason to report it. In order to provide a broader and more comprehensive perspective, data from the South Carolina Department of Corrections and the South Carolina Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services are also included, as are data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health. This report seeks to provide information concerning the scope and nature of illegal drug activity at the state level; however it also seeks to provide detailed information concerning short term trends and offender profiles at the county level.

Details: Blythewood, SC: South Carolina Department of Public Safety, Office of Justice Programs, 2011. 311p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 30, 2011 at: http://www.scdps.org/ojp/stats/IllegalDrugs/Report%20v14.pdf

Year: 2011

Country: United States

URL: http://www.scdps.org/ojp/stats/IllegalDrugs/Report%20v14.pdf

Shelf Number: 122954

Keywords:
Drug Abuse and Addiction (South Carolina)
Drug Offenders
Drug Offenses
Drugs and Crime
Illegal Drugs

Author: Uda, Terry

Title: Drug and Alcohol Related Offenses and Arrests: 2005-2009

Summary: This report provides information on Idaho alcohol and drug arrests for years 2005 through 2009. The data for this report was obtained from the Idaho Incident Based Reporting System. The first section of the report gives an overall summary of drug and alcohol arrests. The report then presents arrestee demographic information: including race, ethnicity, gender and age. Also addressed are drug seizures and incidents that involved an offender or offenders suspected of using drugs and/or alcohol. The report concludes with a comparison of Idaho counties by alcohol arrest, drug arrests and drug seizures.

Details: Meridian, ID: Idaho State Police, Statistical Analysis Center, 2011. 24p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 30, 2011 at: http://www.isp.idaho.gov/pgr/Research/documents/DrugTrend0509_000.pdf

Year: 2011

Country: United States

URL: http://www.isp.idaho.gov/pgr/Research/documents/DrugTrend0509_000.pdf

Shelf Number: 122955

Keywords:
Alcohol Related Crime, Disorder (Idaho)
Arrests
Drug Offenders
Drug Offenses
Drugs and Crime

Author: International Crisis Group

Title: Guatemala: Drug Trafficking and Violence

Summary: The bloody eruption of Mexican-led cartels into Guatemala is the latest chapter in a vicious cycle of violence and institutional failure. Geography has placed the country – midway between Colombia and the U.S. – at one of the world’s busiest intersections for illegal drugs. Cocaine (and now ingredients for synthetic drugs) flows in by air, land and sea and from there into Mexico en route to the U.S. Cool highlands are an ideal climate for poppy cultivation. Weapons, given lenient gun laws and a long history of arms smuggling, are plentiful. An impoverished, underemployed population is a ready source of recruits. The winner of November’s presidential election will need to address endemic social and economic inequities while confronting the violence and corruption associated with drug trafficking. Decisive support from the international community is needed to assure these challenges do not overwhelm a democracy still recovering from decades of political violence and military rule. Gangs and common criminals flourish under the same conditions that allow drug traffickers to operate with brazen impunity: demoralised police forces, an often intimidated or corrupted judicial system and a population so distrustful of law enforcement that the rich depend on private security forces while the poor arm themselves in local vigilante squads. Over the past decade, the homicide rate has doubled, from twenty to more than 40 per 100,000 inhabitants. While traffickers contribute to the crime wave in border regions and along drug corridors, youth gangs terrorise neighbourhoods in Guatemala City. The outrages perpetrated by the most violent Mexican gang, the Zetas – who decapitate and dismember their victims for maximum impact – generate the most headlines. Violent drug cartels, however, are only one manifestation of the gangs and clandestine associations that have long dominated Guatemalan society and crippled its institutions. How to change this dynamic will be one of the most difficult challenges facing the winner of November’s presidential election. Both Otto Pérez Molina and Manuel Baldizón have promised to get tough on criminals, but a hardline approach that fails to include a strategy to foster rule of law is unlikely to yield anything more than sporadic, short-term gains. For decades, the state itself was the most prolific violator of human rights. During the 36-year conflict that ended with the peace accords of 1996, the armed forces murdered dissidents in urban areas and razed villages suspected of harbouring guerrilla forces. Just as Guatemala was recovering from years of political violence, control of the South American drug trade was shifting from Colombia to Mexico. Increased interdiction in the Caribbean, plus the arrest of Colombian cartel leaders, allowed Mexican traffickers to begin taking over drug distribution in the late 1990s. Mexican President Felipe Calderón’s crackdown after 2006 forced traffickers to import increasing amounts of contraband into Central America and then move it north over land. The shipment of more drugs through Central America has had a multiplier effect on illegal activities. Violence is especially intense in coastal and border departments, where traffickers and gangs have diversified into other activities, such as local drug dealing, prostitution, extortion and kidnapping. In some regions, narcotics traffickers have become prominent entrepreneurs, with both licit and illicit businesses. They participate in community events, distribute gifts to the needy and finance political campaigns. Their well-armed henchmen offer protection from other gangs and common criminals. Those who finance opium poppy cultivation provide impoverished indigenous communities with greater monetary income than they have ever known. But these domestic trafficking groups also operate with impunity to seize land and intimidate or eliminate competitors. Local police and judicial authorities, under-resourced and widely mistrusted, offer little opposition. There are signs of progress. The attorney general is reviving long-stalled investigations into past human rights abuses while aggressively pursuing the current threat posed by organised crime. A veteran human rights activist was tapped by the outgoing government to reform the police. The International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG), a UN-Guatemalan initiative, is pursuing high-profile criminal cases. Donors are financing vetted units, providing new investigative tools and building new judicial facilities. Moreover, over the past year, Central American authorities, with international help, have arrested half a dozen high-level Guatemalan traffickers who are awaiting extradition to the U.S. But ending the impunity that has allowed trafficking networks and other illegal organisations to flourish will require a long-term, multi-dimensional effort. To shore up recent gains and lay the ground work for sustainable reform it is urgent that: •the new president allow Attorney General Claudia Paz y Paz to complete her four-year term, fully support Police Reform Commissioner Helen Mack and encourage CICIG’s efforts to pursue high profile cases and build prosecutorial capacity; •political and business leaders work together both to increase government revenues for crime-fighting and social programs and to devise anti-corruption initiatives that will hold officials responsible for their use of public funds; •regional leaders increase cooperation to interdict illegal narcotics shipments and to break up transnational criminal groups through entities such as the Central American Integration System (SICA); •the U.S. and other consuming countries provide financial aid commensurate with their national interest in stopping the drug trade and aimed not just at arresting traffickers but also at building strong, democratically accountable institutions; and •international leaders open a serious debate on counter-narcotics policies, including strategies designed to curtail both production and consumption; it is past time to re-evaluate policies that have failed either to alleviate the suffering caused by drug addiction or to reduce the corruption and violence associated with drug production and trafficking.

Details: Bogota; Brussels: International Crisis Group, 2011. 32p.

Source: Internet Resource: Latin America Report No. 39: Accessed October 18, 2011 at: http://www.crisisgroup.org/~/media/Files/latin-america/39%20Guatemala%20--%20Drug%20Trafficking%20and%20Violence.pdf

Year: 2011

Country: Guatemala

URL: http://www.crisisgroup.org/~/media/Files/latin-america/39%20Guatemala%20--%20Drug%20Trafficking%20and%20Violence.pdf

Shelf Number: 123052

Keywords:
Drug Cartels
Drug Trafficking (Guatemala)
Drugs and Crime
Gangs
Homicides
Organized Crime
Violent Crime

Author: United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime

Title: Guidelines for the Forensic analysis of drugs facilitating sexual assault and other criminal acts

Summary: Drug-facilitated crimes are criminal acts carried out by means of administering a substance to a person with the intention of impairing behaviour, perceptions or decision-making capacity. Drug-facilitated sexual assault occurs when a person is subjected to sexual act(s) while they are incapacitated or unconscious due to the effect(s) of ethanol, a drug and/or other intoxicating substance, and as a result unable to resist or consent to such acts. While the covert use of drugs to facilitate crimes has occurred over the centuries, it has recently been highlighted by a significant increase in reports worldwide. In response to UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) resolution 53/7 on 'International cooperation in countering the covert administration of psychoactive substances related to sexual assault and other criminal acts', UNODC organized a meeting of international subject-matter experts and developed Guidelines for the Forensic analysis of drugs facilitating sexual assault and other criminal acts. These Guidelines outline the investigative and analytical challenges related to drug-facilitated crimes and emphasize the importance of evidence collection as a basis for further investigation. They address the limitations of the analytical toxicological investigation and other issues that may impact the interpretation of results. Detailed consideration is given to all analytical aspects important in the detection and identification of substances and interpretation of results in the context of drug-facilitated sexual assault cases. The importance of collaboration of all parties involved in the investigation and the importance of collecting consistent data is also emphasized. The Guidelines aim to assist in the investigation, analytical detection and prosecution in drug-facilitated crime cases and provide guidance specifically to: i)investigators and medical professionals as to requirements for successful evidence collection including sample collection and storage; and ii) analytical toxicologists to carry out analysis of these substances and interpret results in cases of drug-facilitated crimes.

Details: Vienna, Austria: United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, 2011. 58p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed February 14, 2012 at http://www.unodc.org/documents/scientific/forensic_analys_of_drugs_facilitating_sexual_assault_and_other_criminal_acts.pdf

Year: 2011

Country: International

URL: http://www.unodc.org/documents/scientific/forensic_analys_of_drugs_facilitating_sexual_assault_and_other_criminal_acts.pdf

Shelf Number: 124136

Keywords:
Criminal Evidence
Drugs and Crime
Forensic Science
Forensics
Sexual Assault

Author: Ryan, Meghan J.

Title: Breakthrough Science and the New Rehabilitation

Summary: Breakthroughs in pharmacology, genetics, and neuroscience are transforming how society views criminals and thus how society should respond to criminal behavior. Although the criminal law has long been based on notions of culpability, science is undercutting the assumption that offenders are actually responsible for their criminal actions. Further, scientific advances have suggested that criminals can be changed at the biochemical level. The public has become well aware of these advances largely due to pervasive media reporting on these issues and also as a result of the pharmaceutical industry’s incessant advertising of products designed to transform individuals by treating everything from depression to sexual dysfunction. This public familiarity with and expectation of scientific advances has set into motion the resurrection of the penological theory of rehabilitation that has lain dormant since the mid-1970s. The New Rehabilitation that is surfacing, however, differs in form from the rehabilitation of the earlier era by effecting change through biochemical interventions rather than through attempting to change an offender’s character. This raises novel concerns about this New Rehabilitation that must be examined in light of the science that has sparked its revival.

Details: Unpublished, 2010. 51p. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2019368 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2019368

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 20, 2012 at http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2019368

Year: 9368

Country: United States

URL: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2019368

Shelf Number: 124608

Keywords:
Criminal Psychology
Drugs and Crime
Rehabilitation
Sentencing
Sentencing Reform

Author: Reyes, Luis Carlos

Title: Estimating the Causal Effect of Forced Eradication on Coca Cultivation in Colombian Municipalities

Summary: 1 Estimating the Causal Effect of Forced Eradication on Coca Cultivation in Colombian Municipalities Luis Carlos Reyes1 Michigan State University Department of Economics East Lansing, MI 49544 reyesher@msu.edu January 26, 2011 Abstract Coca eradication has been aggressively pursued by the Colombian government to reduce the amount of land that agricultural households in the Andean country devote to this illegal crop. However, little work has been done to assess the causal effect of the policy on land allocation decisions. I use a six year panel of observations covering the entire country for the years 2001- 2006 to estimate this effect at the municipality level, exploiting exogenous sources of variation in eradication and taking an IV approach to estimation. The instruments are derived from changes in the expected cost of coca eradication as crews get far from the zone where Antinarcotics Police helicopters can protect them from the illegal armed groups that try to shoot them down. IV estimation shows that the causal effect of a one percent increase in eradication is slightly less than a one percent increase in coca cultivation.

Details: Munich: Munich Personal RePEc Archive, 2011. 38p.

Source: Internet Resource: MPRA Paper No. 33478: Accessed May 3, 2012 at: http://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/33478/

Year: 2011

Country: Colombia

URL: http://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/33478/

Shelf Number: 125134

Keywords:
Coca Eradication
Cocaine (Colombia)
Drug Control Policy
Drugs and Crime

Author: Sorensen, David W.M.

Title: Rounding Up Suspects in the Rise of Danish Burglary: A Statistical Analysis of the 2008/09 Increase in Residential Break-ins

Summary: During the 18-year period 1990 to 2007, the number of reported residential burglaries (indbrud i beboelse) was very stable. This changed in 2008 to 2010, when burglary increased by 30% (averaged over these three years) as compared to the previous 18-year average. Seen in its most extreme light, the number of reported burglaries in 2009 was 65.3% higher than in 2005. Little solid evidence exists as to why residential burglary increased so dramatically in 2008 and 2009. The current report examines this question using POLSAS data on 234,745 residential burglaries reported in Denmark during the six-year period 2005-2010, plus data on long term crime trends (1990-2010) and other social indicators. The report begins with a comparison of the rise in burglary to trends in overall Danish property crime. This reveals that the increase in burglary is far greater than that for any other major crime category. Burglary is therefore unique in this regard. Trends in Danish burglary are then compared to burglary trends in the EU and other Nordic countries to see if Denmark’s increase is part of a wider EU/Nordic phenomenon. The EU countries worst hit by the economic recession of 2008 experienced the sharpest increases in burglary. Denmark shares little in common with these countries, but shares much in common with Sweden, which also experienced a (far more modest) rise in burglary. In sum, domestic and international trend analyses reveal that the increase in Danish burglary probably has multiple causes emanating from both within and outside Denmark. The report examines whether any of the following factors may have contributed to the rise in Danish burglary: · Changes in public reporting tendencies and police recording practices · Population age, drug use and economic recession · Increasing professionalism · Crime tourism · The Police Reform of 2007 The results are as follows: · Reporting/Recording: The report finds no evidence of increased reporting tendencies other than the fact that victim loss per burglary has increased, which all else equal should increase the likelihood of reporting. There have been no changes in police recording practices or in the ease with which burglary can be reported to police. There is, therefore, no reason to believe that the increase in reported burglary stems from a simple change in the way in which it is reported or recorded by police. · Age/Drugs/Economy: There has been a small increase in the proportion of the Danish population in the peak crime ages (16-25), as well as increases in the use of cocaine and amphetamines. The economic crisis of 2008/9 increased unemployment, which created financial hardship especially for young adults. All of these factors may have contributed to the increase in burglary, but none are likely to have caused it on their own. · Professionalism: Increased professionalism is likely to manifest itself in greater efficiency and greater productivity, i.e., more burglaries. There is evidence that burglars are becoming more professional in Denmark. This evidence includes an increase in the theft of expensive designer furniture (which requires trucks to transport), an increase in repeat victimization at the same households, and an increase in the average number of charged crimes per offender. · Crime Tourism: While there has been a significant increase in crime tourism, i.e., burglaries committed by persons who have their legal residence outside of Denmark, it seems unlikely to explain the increase in burglary on its own. This is because the overall raw number of burglaries estimated as attributable to crime tourists is simply too low. Furthermore, part of the apparent increase in crime tourism may reflect an increased focus on the part of the police. This said, crime tourism does seem to be growing, and crime tourists have a higher crime frequency per person (as measured via average number of charges) than Danish residents and tend to operate in larger co-offending groups. The average number of charged crimes per offender is also increasing among Danish residents. Only 6.5% of all cases result in charges against one or more offenders. The figures on crime tourism are based on this minority of apprehended offenders and therefore must be interpreted with caution. · Police Reform: Distractions caused by the Police Reform of 2007 are likely to have temporarily reduced police performance resulting in decreases in clearance rates (sigtelsesrater). Decreased clearance may have contributed to the rise in burglary via its negative effects on incapacitation. The influx of crime tourism and distractions caused by the Police Reform are likely to have had the most influence amongst the factors listed above. This said, the evidence for their involvement is not especially compelling. There may be other factors far more important that have not been considered in this report. One factor completely missing from this report is the possibility that changes in police tactics (i.e., use/disuse of Top Ten lists, DNA, etc.) influenced the rise. Any future investigations of the 2008/9 rise in residential burglary should consider this.

Details: Copenhagen: Danish Crime Prevention Council, 2011. 64p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 9, 2012 at: http://www.dkr.dk/sites/default/files/Rise_in_Burglary.pdf

Year: 2011

Country: Denmark

URL: http://www.dkr.dk/sites/default/files/Rise_in_Burglary.pdf

Shelf Number: 125225

Keywords:
Drugs and Crime
Property Crimes
Residential Burglary (Denmark)
Theft
Tourism and Crime

Author: Choate, David E.

Title: Comparing South Mountain Neighborhood Arrestees among AARIN Respondents

Summary: The South Mountain neighborhood is located in the southern part of the City of Phoenix in Maricopa County. The three zip codes of 85040, 85041 and 85042 comprise the bulk of the neighborhood and serve as the target area boundary for this report. South Mountain is a distressed community, with significant need and limited resources. It is an area that differs from most of the city, with a pre- dominantly economically disadvantaged Latino and African-American population. As part of Maricopa County’s efforts to identify the needs, the gaps in services and resources, and to use data to inform the County about making effective and meaningful policy changes, this report uses data collected as part of the ongoing AARIN project and economic measures derived from U.S. Census data to help examine and potentially guide restoration efforts in South Mountain. The report is divided into two sections for analysis. The first section uses U.S. Census estimates as a basis for understanding some of the community’s social and economic context through demographic characteristics. The second series of analysis relies on data gathered as part of the AARIN project to compare arrestees from the South Mountain area to respondents from the rest of Maricopa County. When the information provided by AARIN respondents is combined with the social and economic characteristics of the South Mountain community at large, meaningful policy implications emerge.

Details: Phoenix: Center for Violence Prevention and Community Safety, Arizona State University, 2009. 32p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 16, 2012 at: http://cvpcs.asu.edu/sites/default/files/content/products/AARIN%20Report_south%20mountain_FINAL2.pdf

Year: 2009

Country: United States

URL: http://cvpcs.asu.edu/sites/default/files/content/products/AARIN%20Report_south%20mountain_FINAL2.pdf

Shelf Number: 125619

Keywords:
Drug Offenders (Arizona)
Drugs and Crime
Neighborhoods and Crime
Poverty

Author: Fagan, Jeffrey

Title: Race and Selective Enforcement in Public Housing

Summary: Drugs, crime and public housing are closely linked in policy and politics, and their nexus has animated several intensive drug enforcement programs targeted at public housing residents. In New York City, police systematically conduct “vertical patrols” in public housing buildings, making tens of thousands of Terry stops each year. During these patrols, both uniformed and undercover officers systematically move through the buildings, temporarily detaining and questioning residents and visitors, often at a low threshold of suspicion, and usually alleging trespass to justify the stop. We use a case-control design to identify the effects of living in one of New York City’s 330 public housing developments on the probability of stop, frisk and arrest from 2004-11. We find that the incidence rate ratio for trespass stops and arrests is more than two times greater in public housing than in the immediate surrounding neighborhoods. We decompose these effects using first differences models and find that the difference in percent Black and Hispanic populations in public housing compared to the surrounding area predicts the disparity in trespass enforcement and enforcement of other criminal law violations. The pattern of racially selective enforcement suggests the potential for systemic violations of the Fourteenth Amendment’s prohibition on racial discrimination.

Details: New York: Columbia Law School, 2012. 45p.

Source: Internet Resource: Columbia Public Law Research Paper No. 12-314: Accessed September 11, 2012 at: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2133384

Year: 2012

Country: United States

URL: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2133384

Shelf Number: 126298

Keywords:
Drugs and Crime
Public Housing
Racial Discrimination
Racial Disparities
Racial Profiling in Law Enforcement

Author: International Drug Policy Consortium

Title: IDPC Response to the UNODC World Drug Report 2012

Summary: 26 June 2012 saw the launch of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)’s flagship publication, the World Drug Report. This IDPC response provides an overview of the data and topics presented in the Report and where appropriate, within the broader context of the current state of the UN drug control framework, offer a critical analysis of both. This year’s publication represents an impressive and wide-ranging set of data collated and analysed by UNODC and provides an overview of recent trends and the current situation in terms of production, trafficking, consumption and the consequences of illicit drug use for treatment, drug-related diseases and drug-related deaths.

Details: London: International Drug Policy Consortium, 2012. 22p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed November 15, 2012 at http://dl.dropbox.com/u/64663568/library/IDPC-response-to-the-UNODC-world-drug-report-2012.pdf

Year: 2012

Country: International

URL: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/64663568/library/IDPC-response-to-the-UNODC-world-drug-report-2012.pdf

Shelf Number: 126930

Keywords:
Crime Statistics
Crime Trends
Drug Trafficking
Drug Use and Abuse
Drugs and Crime

Author: United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime

Title: Afghanistan: Survey of Commercial Cannabis Cultivation and Production 2011

Summary: The 2011 Survey of Commercial Cannabis Cultivation and Production estimated the total area under cultivation in 2011 at 12,000 hectares and a potential production of 1,300 tons. These figures only include commercial, mono-crop cannabis cultivation as the survey tool cannot capture small-scale “kitchen garden” cultivation of cannabis, which is often for localized and/or personal use and is only thought to account for a small percentage of total production. Afghanistan’s importance as a producer of cannabis resin does not necessarily mean that it is the principal supplier of the world’s big cannabis resin markets in North Africa, Europe and South-West Asia, but its relative importance may be growing whereas that of Morocco, though still very considerable, may be on the decline. Likewise, seizure data imply that not even all the cannabis resin trafficked in South-West Asia originates in Afghanistan. Signs of both stabilisation and change In 2011, cultivation and production of cannabis resin in Afghanistan appeared stable and there was no evidence of substantive change in comparison to the previous UNODC cannabis surveys of 2009 and 2010. Nevertheless, the number of cannabis-growing households in Afghanistan increased by 38 per cent, from 47,000 in 2010 to 65,000 in 2011, virtually all of whom were sporadic growers who had chosen that year to cultivate cannabis once again, while only a small amount were first-time cannabis growers. Moreover, commercial cannabis resin cultivation has spread to more and more provinces, being cultivated in almost two thirds of them (21 provinces) in 2011 as opposed to in only half (17 out of 34) in 2009. Principal among the numerous contributing factors to the spread of cannabis cultivation in Afghanistan is the fact that the price of cannabis has increased dramatically in the past few years, with best quality resin rising from US$ 35/kg to US$ 95/kg since 2009. UNODC price monitoring shows that the cannabis price rise has developed in parallel with the opium price hike caused by the opium crop failure in 2010, making its per-hectare income similar to that of opium and thus financially very attractive to farmers. But because cannabis cultivation is less labour intensive — less weeding is involved and the extraction of “garda” (powdered cannabis resin) can be done at home in a matter of weeks with the help of family members instead of hired labour — it is actually more cost-effective than opium. Such advantages contribute to the status of cannabis as a lucrative cash crop. Yet the average area cultivated dropped from 0.4 ha (2009) to 0.29 ha (2011), thus although more households grew cannabis in 2011 they actually cultivated a smaller area than previously, while the per-hectare yield also decreased by 25 per cent from its 2009 level, especially for best quality resin. The increase in the number of households cultivating cannabis may mean that there are more, if smaller scale, cannabis growers who benefit from cannabis as a lucrative sideline on an opportunistic basis. Indeed, the majority of farmers interviewed do not grow cannabis every year, some grow every other year and some do so even less frequently. To a certain extent, the cultivation of cannabis in Afghanistan thus appears to be self limiting — but why? Cannabis is a summer crop and the agricultural area available is much reduced in summer. Indeed, in the south, west and east of the country winter/spring cultivation is predominant, which is when most arable land is available. Cannabis needs irrigation water, which decreases with the arrival of summer and is only sufficient for a partial summer crop. Farmers have to balance different requirements, such as the provision of fodder for livestock, and have risk-minimizing strategies, meaning that they always grow some staple crops and hesitate to devote all their available land to just one crop. Cannabis has a long vegetation period lasting into October/November so no winter crop can be planted on a harvested cannabis field, which must then remain fallow, leading to a loss of income and all the subsequent ramifications. certain portion of farmers do not engage in cannabis cultivation at all because it is forbidden in Islam. The same is true for opium, which, while it is grown by many more households, on much more land and to a far greater extent, often co-exists with cannabis in Afghanistan. For example, commercial cannabis cultivation has shifted over the past half decade from the north to the more insecure south of the country and its cultivation is geographically associated with that of opium. Most cannabis-cultivating provinces also produced poppy in 2011 (15 out of 21 provinces), with the increase in cannabis-cultivating provinces since 2009 mainly being due to poppy provinces commencing commercial cannabis cultivation, to the extent that all major poppy-cultivating provinces also contained cannabis cultivation, while provinces free of poppy and cannabis continued to remain so. Furthermore, to a large extent those involved in cannabis and opium cultivation are actually the same people, even if opium growing households do not grow cannabis every year: in 2011, a large majority of cannabis farmers in Afghanistan (58%) also grew poppy, but only 6% of poppy farmers grew cannabis in that year. Moreover, many opium traffickers also trade in cannabis resin and there seems to be a striking correlation between opium and cannabis farm-gate prices, suggesting a considerable degree of market integration. Another of the principal similarities between poppy and commercial cannabis cultivation is that households growing illicit crops have a much smaller share of remittances than non-growing households, meaning that one or more members of the household works abroad. Cannabis-growing households often do not have to send members abroad as they can earn the necessary cash component by growing cannabis. A similar pattern exists for poppy-growing households. However, there are also some important differences between opium and cannabis production. For example, cannabis garda quality reportedly deteriorates after a couple of months so most farmers sell the complete harvest before that happens (represented by the strong post-harvest dip in prices in the months of January to March). Processing garda into hashish can increase storability but the process is time consuming and adds little value for farmers, who already make a tidy profit by producing garda. Opium, on the other hand, can be stored for years without losing quality, and can be used as a store of value (effectively a bank account), while cannabis, though undoubtedly an attractive cash crop, cannot. The future Another important difference between cannabis and poppy is that there is increasing Government pressure to eradicate poppy cultivation in Afghanistan whereas eradication of cannabis is not underpinned by systematic programmes for eradication and alternative development, nor by the support of financial donors. In addition, the associated lower cost of cannabis cultivation in comparison to poppy cultivation (estimated at 10% and 40% of gross income, respectively) makes it more profitable than opium. The possibility of the commercial production of cannabis gradually playing a much bigger role in the illicit Afghan economy, and eventually replacing opium, is unlikely, but still possible. The huge disparity between the current size of areas under cultivation of the two drugs means that ― even if that were possible ― it would not happen in the short term, while the aforementioned environmental and agricultural limitations of cannabis cultivation would make it difficult. But shedding light on price trend coincidence between opium and cannabis farm-gate prices, cannabis trafficking and export, and cannabis cultivation in neighbouring countries would certainly help understand the future of commercial cannabis cultivation in Afghanistan. Any policy aimed at reducing cannabis production in Afghanistan should, however, take into account the links between the two illicit crops and that there is a large pool of sporadic commercial cannabis farmers who may be prepared to cultivate cannabis more frequently should farm-gate prices remain high. The challenge to policymakers is to understand the decision-making process at the household level regarding the sporadic nature of cannabis cultivation and to develop strategies accordingly.

Details: Vienna, UNODC, 2012. 49p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed November 24, 2012 at: http://www.unodc.org/documents/crop-monitoring/Afghanistan/2011_Afghanistan_Cannabis_Survey_Report_w_cover_small.pdf

Year: 2012

Country: Afghanistan

URL: http://www.unodc.org/documents/crop-monitoring/Afghanistan/2011_Afghanistan_Cannabis_Survey_Report_w_cover_small.pdf

Shelf Number: 126985

Keywords:
Cannabis (Afghanistan)
Drugs and Crime
Marijuana

Author: European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction

Title: EU Drug Markets Report: A Strategic Analysis

Summary: The EU drug markets report is the first comprehensive overview of illicit drug markets in the European Union. It covers issues such as production, consumer markets, trafficking, organised crime and policy responses, along with a review of the markets for heroin, cocaine, cannabis, amphetamine, methamphetamine, ecstasy and new psychoactive substances. It concludes with concrete action points for the areas where the current EU response to the drug market and its consequent harms may be improved. An essential reference tool for law enforcement professionals, policymakers, the academic community and the general public, the report combines Europol’s strategic and operational understanding of trends and developments in organised crime with the EMCDDA’s ongoing monitoring and analysis of the drug phenomenon in Europe and beyond.

Details: Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2013. 155p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed February 4, 2013 at: http://www.emcdda.europa.eu/publications/joint-publications/drug-markets

Year: 2013

Country: Europe

URL: http://www.emcdda.europa.eu/publications/joint-publications/drug-markets

Shelf Number: 127467

Keywords:
Drug Abuse and Addiction
Drug Trafficking
Drugs and Crime
Illegal Drug Markets (Europe)
Organized Crime

Author: Hutcherson, Donald T., II

Title: Street Dreams: The Effect of Incarceration on Illegal Earnings

Summary: Theory and research on the employment lives of the ex-incarcerated suggests that imprisonment can decrease earnings in the conventional labor market for young adults (e.g., Sampson and Laub, 1993; Sampson and Laub, 2003; Western, 2002; Western, 2006). However, little is known about the influence of imprisonment on criminal earnings. To fill this gap, the research reported below addresses the following question: How does incarceration influence criminal earnings for adolescents and young adults? Drawing on theories regarding stigma, social and human capital, and opportunity structure, I develop an argument to explain how incarceration can yield returns in the form of greater illegal earnings. Briefly, the case is made that due to failures in the conventional labor market, the ex-incarcerated are forced to rely on criminal earnings from illegal opportunity structures during the life course. Thus, illegal earnings will be greater for this group than for their counterparts who have not been incarcerated. To assess the role of prior incarceration on illegal earnings, this study estimates random-effects models for adolescents and young adult male ex-offenders and non-offenders using the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY97) for 1997-2005. Consistent with the theoretical arguments, the findings reveal that individuals with an incarceration history earn significantly higher annual illegal earnings than those who do not have such a history. This is true net of a variety of predictors of illegal income, including factors related to 'persistent heterogeneity'. The analyses also reveal an interaction effect of prior incarceration and African-American racial status on illegal earnings, whereby formerly incarcerated African-American males earn much higher predicted illegal income than former incarcerees from other race/ethnic backgrounds. To assess the role of different sources of illegal earnings, I also investigated the influence of prior incarceration on illegal earnings from drug trafficking. These analyses demonstrated a strong positive relationship between incarceration history and annual illegal income from this source. Further, interaction models revealed that ex-incarcerated African-American males earn significantly higher predicted logged income from drug trafficking than Hispanic and White ex-offenders and those never incarcerated. There is also an interaction between prior incarceration and hardcore drug use for this outcome. Formerly incarcerated individuals who use hardcore drugs earn much higher predicted logged annual illegal income from drug sales than ex-incarcerated non-drug users, non-incarcerated drug users and non-incarcerated individuals that do not use drugs.

Details: Columbus, OH: Ohio State University, 2008. 138p.

Source: Internet Resource: Dissertation: Accessed February 5, 2013 at: http://etd.ohiolink.edu/view.cgi?acc_num=osu1218205841

Year: 2008

Country: United States

URL: http://etd.ohiolink.edu/view.cgi?acc_num=osu1218205841

Shelf Number: 127513

Keywords:
Drug Trafficking
Drugs and Crime
Illegal Income
Imprisonment
Incarceration

Author: Ransley, Janet

Title: Reducing the Methamphetamine Problem in Australia: Evaluating Innovative Partnerships between Police, Pharmacies and other Third Parties

Summary: The aim of this research was to explore the role of partnerships between the police and third parties in reducing methamphetamine problems in two different states in Australia. A variety of research methods and data sources were used to comprehensively assess the nature and impact (both intended and unintended) of these partnerships so as to contribute to the drug law enforcement evidence base and help police to better control drug problems in Australia. The overall research objectives, as set out in the original grant submission, were to: document the creation, nature and characteristics of partnerships between the police and third parties that seek to reduce sales of pseudoephedrine and control the methamphetamine problem in Queensland and Victoria; understand the wider impact of law enforcement efforts to reduce pseudoephedrine sales in terms of treatment, prevention and harm reduction across Queensland and Victoria; evaluate the impact of drug law enforcement partnerships with third parties (including Queensland's Project STOP) on the methamphetamine market in Queensland and Victoria; and assess any displacement (spatial, temporal, tactical, offence), diffusion of crime control benefits, or other unintended consequences of these partnerships (including Project STOP). The research has been jointly funded by the National Drug Law Enforcement Research Fund (NDLERF) and the Drug Policy Modelling Program (DPMP) at the University of New South Wales, a collaboration between the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre (NDARC) and a number of other organisations. This report discusses findings and outcomes in relation to the aspects of the research funded by NDLERF. Research funded by DPMP is still in progress and will be separately reported at a later date. Together, these two arms of the research will represent a comprehensive evaluation of the Project STOP partnership. This report therefore focuses on the first and second objectives above, the documenting and analysis of police partnerships with third parties and understanding the wider impact of law enforcement efforts to reduce pseudoephedrine sales across Queensland and Victoria. In addition, it includes best practice guidelines for reducing problems in relation to pseudoephedrine diversion. The research yet to be completed will address the final two research objectives listed above, namely the impact if any of Project STOP on methamphetamine markets and crime outcomes. This arm of the research will be completed in 2011.

Details: Canberra: National Drug Law Enforcement Research Fund, 2011. 59p.

Source: Internet Resource: Monograph Series No. 39: Accessed February 14, 2013 at: http://www.ndlerf.gov.au/pub/Monograph_39.pdf

Year: 2011

Country: Australia

URL: http://www.ndlerf.gov.au/pub/Monograph_39.pdf

Shelf Number: 127622

Keywords:
Drug Abuse Prevention
Drugs and Crime
Methamphetamine (Australia)
Partnerships
Pharmacies
Third-Parties

Author: Molzahn, Cory

Title: Drug Violence in Mexico: Data and Analysis Through 2012

Summary: The year 2012 marked the end of the six-year term of President Felipe Calderon (2006-2012), who was both lauded for his administration's unprecedented assault on organized crime groups and criticized for the loss of human life that accompanied this fight. From the beginning of his presidency, President Calderon made security a primary focus of his administration by doubling national security budgets and deploying tens of thousands of federal forces to the states most impacted by violence among drug trafficking organizations. However, under President Calderon, the number of overall homicides annually increased more than two and a half times from 10,452 in 2006 to 27,213 in 2011, according to figures from the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (Instituto Nacional de Estadistica y Geografia, INEGI). During the first five full years of Calderon's term - from 2007 through 2011 - INEGI reported 95,646 people killed, an average of 19,129 per year, or more than 50 people per day. By these measures, there was a 24% average annual increase in overall homicides during the Calderon administration. Calculating that overall homicides appear to have dropped by roughly 5-10% in 2012, our estimate is that the total number of homicides during the Calderon administration was likely around 120,000 to 125,000 people killed, depending on whether INEGI or the National System of Public Security (Sistema Nacional de Seguridad Publica, SNSP) data are used. In July 2012, Mexico elected a new president, Enrique Pena Nieto, who took office on December 1, restoring to power the Institutional Revolutionary Party (Partido Revolucionario Institucional, PRI), which governed Mexico without interruption for over seven decades until it lost the presidency in 2000. For better security coordination among government agencies, President Pena Nieto has instructed the Interior Ministry (Secretaria de Gobernacion, SEGOB) to oversee the creation of a new network, the System of Coordination and Cooperation (Sistema de Coordinacion y Cooperacion). In January 2012, Pena Nieto gave a clear message regarding the direction that his presidency will follow on security policy when he unveiled the "Pact for Mexico" (Pacto por Mexico), an agreement signed along with representatives from Mexico's major political parties. The Pacts 34-page itemized list of policies and reform's set forth proposals in several areas related to security and justice issues, particularly focusing on reducing homicides, kidnapping, and extortion. The Pact outlined steps to establish a 10,000-person National Gendarmerie and a unified police command system at the state-level. Above all, from the outset of his term, Pena Nieto declared that his security strategy would abandon the Calderon administration's heavy dependence on military deployments and its focus on dismantling organized crime groups. This information is part of Drug Violence in Mexico: Data and Analysis through 2012, the fourth of a series of reports that the Trans-Border Institute's Justice in Mexico Project has put together each year since 2010 to compile the latest available data and analysis to evaluate these challenges.

Details: San Diego, CA: Trans-Border Institute, Joan B. Kroc School of Peace Studies, University of San Diego, 2013. 50p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed February 22, 2013 at: http://justiceinmexico.files.wordpress.com/2013/02/130206-dvm-2013-final.pdf

Year: 2013

Country: Mexico

URL: http://justiceinmexico.files.wordpress.com/2013/02/130206-dvm-2013-final.pdf

Shelf Number: 127699

Keywords:
Drug-Related Violence (Mexico)
Drugs and Crime
Homicides
Organized Crime
Violent Crime

Author: Weisheit, Ralph A.

Title: Methamphetamine and Violence in Illinois

Summary: Methamphetamine has spread eastward from Hawaii and California to other parts of the country, including the Midwest. Despite aggressive efforts by state and federal governments the problem persists and has been particularly visible in rural areas of the Midwest. Responding to the problem has been made more difficult because social science research on methamphetamine lags, even though the number of recent methamphetamine users is about the same as the number of recent crack cocaine users – a group that has been extensively studied (SAMHSA, 2006). Beyond a lack of basic information about methamphetamines in rural areas there is a need for research on the association between methamphetamine and violence. Public perceptions notwithstanding, there is very little empirically based knowledge about the association between methamphetamine and violence. This study was designed to fill gaps in knowledge about the problem. The general purpose and goals of the project were as follows: General Purpose -- The general purpose of this study was to generate a better understanding of factors associated with methamphetamine use and methamphetamine-related violence in Illinois. Goals -- There were several inter-related goals for the project: 1. Provide a description of the epidemiology of methamphetamine use and of methamphetamine-related violence, across counties of different sizes in Illinois, with a particular emphasis on use and violence in rural areas. 2. Gain an understanding of the connection between methamphetamine and violence in rural areas, including violence associated with both use and methamphetamine markets. 3. Develop policy recommendations to respond to the methamphetamine problem.

Details: Chicago: Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority, 2012. 76p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed February 22, 2013 at: http://www.icjia.state.il.us/public/pdf/ResearchReports/METHAMPHETAMINE%20AND%20VIOLENCE%20IN%20ILLINOIS%20062009.pdf

Year: 2012

Country: United States

URL: http://www.icjia.state.il.us/public/pdf/ResearchReports/METHAMPHETAMINE%20AND%20VIOLENCE%20IN%20ILLINOIS%20062009.pdf

Shelf Number: 127703

Keywords:
Drug Markets
Drug Use and Abuse
Drugs and Crime
Drugs and Violence
Methamphetamine (Illinois, U.S.)
Rural Areas

Author: Felbab-Brown, Vanda

Title: Focused Deterrence, Selective Targeting, DRug Trafficking and Organised Crime: Concepts and Practicalities

Summary: Organised crime and illicit economies generate multiple threats to states and societies. Yet, goals such as a complete suppression of organised crime may sometimes be unachievable, especially in the context of acute state weakness where underdeveloped and weak state institutions are the norm. Focused-deterrence strategies, selective targeting, and sequential interdiction efforts are being increasingly embraced as more promising law enforcement alternatives. They seek to minimise the most pernicious behaviour of criminal groups, such as engaging in violence, or to maximise certain kinds of desirable behaviour sometimes exhibited by criminals, such as eschewing engagement with terrorist groups. The focused-deterrence, selective targeting strategies also enable overwhelmed law enforcement institutions to overcome certain under resourcing problems. Especially, in the United States, such approaches have produced impressive results in reducing violence and other harms generated by organised crime groups and youth gangs. Such approaches have, however, encountered implementation difficulties elsewhere in the world. This report first outlines the logic and problems of zero-tolerance and undifferentiated targeting in law enforcement policies. Second, it lays out the key theoretical concepts of law-enforcement strategies of focused-deterrence and selective targeting and reviews some of their applications, as in Operation Ceasefire in Boston in the 1990s and urban-policing operations in Rio de Janeiro during the 2000s decade. Third, the report analyses the implementation challenges selective targeting and focused-deterrence strategies have encountered, particularly outside of the United States. And finally, it discusses some key dilemmas in designing selective targeting and focused-deterrence strategies to fight crime.

Details: London: International Drug Policy Consortium, 2013. 20p.

Source: Internet Resource: Modernising Drug Law Enforcement
Report 2, Accessed March 5, 2013 at: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/64663568/library/MDLE-report-2_Focused-deterrence.pdf

Year: 2013

Country: International

URL: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/64663568/library/MDLE-report-2_Focused-deterrence.pdf

Shelf Number: 127836

Keywords:
Drug Trafficking
Drug Trafficking Control
Drugs and Crime
Organized Crime

Author: International Centre for the Prevention of Crime (ICPC)

Title: International Report on Crime Prevention and Community Safety

Summary: The ICPC’s 2012 International Report on Crime Prevention and Community Safety presents key subjects on the international agenda regarding crime and violence, highlighting forms in which prevention can address these issues to generate more resilient and cohesive communities around the world. The third edition of the Report focuses on five topics of significance for crime prevention policymaking at the international level: Human Trafficking, Informal Settlements, Post-Conflict and Post-Disaster Areas, Drug Production in Developed Countries and ICPC’s own Global Survey on Safety in Cities. It analyses these issues from the prevention perspective and contributes to the larger debate on responses to crime using ICPC’s 18 years of expertize in the field. The International Report provides information and tools to help governments, local authorities, international organizations and other actors implement successful crime prevention policies in their countries, cities and communities.

Details: Montreal: ICPC, 2012. 180p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 20, 2013 at: http://www.crime-prevention-intl.org/en/publications/report/report/article/translate-to-english-rapport-international-2012-sur-la-prevention-de-la-criminalite-et-la-secu.html

Year: 2012

Country: International

URL: http://www.crime-prevention-intl.org/en/publications/report/report/article/translate-to-english-rapport-international-2012-sur-la-prevention-de-la-criminalite-et-la-secu.html

Shelf Number: 128012

Keywords:
Crime Prevention
Drug Control
Drug Trafficking
Drugs and Crime
Human Trafficking

Author: Brown, David E.

Title: The Challenge of Drug Trafficking to Democratic Governance and Human Security in West Africa

Summary: International criminal networks mainly from Latin America and Africa—some with links to terrorism—are turning West Africa into a key global hub for the distribution, wholesaling, and production of illicit drugs. These groups represent an existential threat to democratic governance of already fragile states in the subregion because they are using narco-corruption to stage coups d’état, hijack elections, and co-opt or buy political power. Besides a spike in drug-related crime, narcotics trafficking is also fraying West Africa’s traditional social fabric and creating a public health crisis, with hundreds of thousands of new drug addicts. While the inflow of drug money may seem economically beneficial to West Africa in the short-term, investors will be less inclined to do business in the long-term if the subregion is unstable. On net, drug trafficking and other illicit trade represent the most serious challenge to human security in the region since resource conflicts rocked several West African countries in the early 1990s. International aid to West Africa’s “war on drugs” is only in an initial stage; progress will be have to be measured in decades or even generations, not years and also unfold in parallel with creating alternative sustainable livelihoods and addressing the longer-term challenges of human insecurity, poverty, and underdevelopment.

Details: Carlisle, PA: Strategic Studies Institute, U.S. Army War College, 2013. 105p.

Source: Internet Resource: The Letort Papers: Accessed May 23, 2013 at: http://www.strategicstudiesinstitute.army.mil/pubs/display.cfm?pubid=1151

Year: 2013

Country: Africa

URL: http://www.strategicstudiesinstitute.army.mil/pubs/display.cfm?pubid=1151

Shelf Number: 128785

Keywords:
Drug Trafficking
Drugs and Crime
Organized Crime (West Africa)

Author: Weatherburn, Don

Title: The Decline in Robbery and Theft: Inter-state Comparisons

Summary: Aim: To describe and discuss inter-jurisdictional trends in police-recorded robbery and theft offences. Method: Rates of recorded robbery and theft per head of population are calculated for each Australian jurisdiction from 1994/1995 to 2012. Rates of recorded robbery are disaggregated into armed and unarmed robbery. Rates of recorded theft are disaggregated into burglary, motor vehicle theft and other theft. Results: In most jurisdictions, trends in recorded robbery and theft offences rose during the late 1990s, peaked around 2001 and then fell from 2001 to 2012. Between 2001 and 2009, recorded rates of robbery offences in Australia fell by 49.1 per cent, recorded rates of burglary fell by 57.3 per cent, recorded rates of motor vehicle theft fell by 62.2 per cent and recorded rates of other theft fell by 39.3 per cent. Conclusion: The national decline in robbery and theft offences is partly due to a reduction in heroin use and partly due to improvements in the economy but other factors are likely to have also played a role. Research into the causes of the fall in crime is hampered by the absence of any regional breakdown in national recorded crime statistics.

Details: Sydney: NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research, 2013. 7p.

Source: Internet Resource: Issue paper no. 89; Accessed August 19, 2013 at: http://www.bocsar.nsw.gov.au/lawlink/bocsar/ll_bocsar.nsf/vwFiles/BB89.pdf/$file/BB89.pdf

Year: 2013

Country: Australia

URL: http://www.bocsar.nsw.gov.au/lawlink/bocsar/ll_bocsar.nsf/vwFiles/BB89.pdf/$file/BB89.pdf

Shelf Number: 129631

Keywords:
Burglary
Crime Drop
Crime Statistics
Drugs and Crime
Heroin
Motor Vehicle Theft
Robbery (Australia)

Author: Munyo, Ignacio

Title: Youth Crime in Latin America: Key Determinants and Effective Public Policy Responses

Summary: Juvenile delinquency is increasing in almost every country in Latin America - a region where citizen security is the main concern. Youth crime is at the forefront of regional social challenges: Scholars, activists and legislators are all debating both causes and potential solutions to this problem. This report tackles the causes of why an increasing number of youths in the region are engaging in criminal activities, by presenting evidence that this phenomenon could be driven by a change in the incentives to commit crime, rather than created as a result of a generation of youths who differ inherently from its predecessors. In order to do so, this report develops a new dynamic framework with which to analyze juvenile crime as a rational choice in which forward-looking youths decide between legal and criminal activities, and their skills are shaped by their past and present choices. In order to quantify the consequences of each decision, this analysis recognizes the effects of on-the-job training, on-the-crime training, the school of crime in correctional facilities and the social stigmatization of conviction. The report extracts lessons from the case of Uruguay, where substantial changes in juvenile crime incentives come hand in hand with an exponential growth in juvenile offending rates that have tripled over the last 15 years. According to the framework presented in this report, four factors can explain most of the spike in juvenile crime in Uruguay. First, an anemic recovery of wages relative to total income after the severe 2002 economic crisis - which lowered the return to legal activities relative to the financial rewards from crime - accounts for 35 percent of the observed variation. Second, the more lenient juvenile crime law passed in 2004 - which substantially reduced the expected punishment of youth offenders - explains another 30 percent of the increase. Third, the dramatic increase in the escape rate from juvenile correctional facilities - which further lowers expected punishment - accounts for 10 percent of the increase in juvenile crime. Finally, the outbreak of a paste cocaine epidemic - which reduces a youth's capacity to project the future - accounts for another 10 percent of the observed increase in juvenile crime between 1997 and 2010. In other words, a rational framework of behavior is able to explain the threefold increase in juvenile crime in Uruguay as the costs associated with criminal activity substantially decreased, and the gains from crime outgrew the rewards from legal activities.

Details: Washington, DC: Brookings Global, Economic and Social Policy in Latin America Initiative, 2013. 26p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 11, 2014 at: http://www.brookings.edu/~/media/research/files/papers/2013/11/youth%20crime%20in%20latin%20america%20munyo/youth%20crime%20in%20latin%20america%20revised.pdf

Year: 2013

Country: Uruguay

URL: http://www.brookings.edu/~/media/research/files/papers/2013/11/youth%20crime%20in%20latin%20america%20munyo/youth%20crime%20in%20latin%20america%20revised.pdf

Shelf Number: 131858

Keywords:
Drugs and Crime
Juvenile Delinquency
Juvenile Offenders
Socio-Economic Conditions and Crime
Youth Crime

Author: United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)

Title: Regional Programme for Southeast Asia 2014 - 2017. Promoting the Rule of Law and Health to Address Drugs and Crime in Southeast Asia

Summary: The Regional Programme (RP) outlines the proposed scope and focus of UNODC's work in Southeast Asia from 2014 to 2017. It provides a framework for delivering a coherent programme of work to: (i) give clear focus to supporting Member States and regional partners in achieving priority crime and drug outcomes in the region; and (ii) increase the responsiveness, efficiency and effectiveness of UNODC's support to the region. The RP focuses primarily on regional crime and drug challenges that are best addressed through coordinated cross-border and intra-regional cooperation. UNODC Country Programs (where they exist) are linked to the Regional Programme and focus on specific national level needs and support requirements. The RP is supported by an expert team that ensures consistency of approach and the sharing of expertise between jurisdictions. The proposed programme of work has been developed in close consultation with countries of the region and other regional partners, and the situation analysis includes: A profile of UNODC's global strategy, governing bodies and mandates A brief description of the broad regional development context An overview of the key drugs and crime challenges facing the region. Particular attention is given to: (i) transnational organised crime and illicit trafficking; (ii) anti-corruption; (iii) terrorism prevention; (iv) criminal justice; and (v) drugs and health, and alternative development A profile of regional institutions and initiatives relevant to UNODC's mandates and work.

Details: Bangkok: UNODC, 2014. 84p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 28, 2014 at: https://www.unodc.org/documents/southeastasiaandpacific/Publications/2013/SEA_RP_masterversion_6_11_13.pdf

Year: 2014

Country: Asia

URL: https://www.unodc.org/documents/southeastasiaandpacific/Publications/2013/SEA_RP_masterversion_6_11_13.pdf

Shelf Number: 132196

Keywords:
Drug Abuse and Addiction
Drug Control
Drug Trafficking
Drugs and Crime
Organized Crime

Author: Ajzenman, Nicolas

Title: On the Distributive Costs of Drug-Related Homicides

Summary: Reliable estimates of the effects of violence on economic outcomes are scarce. We exploit the manyfold increase in homicides in 2008-2011 in Mexico resulting from its war on organized drug traffickers to estimate the effect of drug-related homicides on house prices. We use an unusually rich dataset that provides national coverage on house prices and homicides and exploit within-municipality variations. We find that the impact of violence on housing prices is borne entirely by the poor sectors of the population. An increase in homicides equivalent to one standard deviation leads to a 3% decrease in the price of low-income housing. In spite of this large burden on the poor, the willingness to pay in order to reverse the increase in drug-related crime is not high. We estimate it to be approximately 0.1% of Mexico's GDP.

Details: Cambridge, MA: National Bureau of Economic Research, 2014. 45p.

Source: Internet Resource: NBER Working Paper Series: Working Paper 20067: Accessed May 5, 2014 at: http://www.nber.org/papers/w20067.pdf

Year: 2014

Country: Mexico

URL: http://www.nber.org/papers/w20067.pdf

Shelf Number: 132248

Keywords:
Drug Trafficking
Drug-Related Violence
Drugs and Crime
Economics of Crime
Homicide
Housing

Author: Heinle, Kimberly

Title: Drug Violence in Mexico: Data and Analysis Through 2013

Summary: Violence is lower in Mexico than elsewhere in the Americas, but average for the region. Levels of violence are relatively lower in Mexico than in several other countries in the Americas, but are about average for the Western Hemisphere. Mexico's 2011 homicide rate of 23.7 was slightly below the region's average of approximately 24.5 homicides per 100,000 people. However, this was up nearly threefold from Mexico's rate of 8.1 per 100,000 in 2007. No other country in the hemisphere has seen such a large increase in the number or rate of homicides over the last decade. Homicides had been declining through the mid-2000s, reaching a record low in 2007. Continuing a long-term trend, the number of intentional homicides documented by Mexico's National Institute of Statistics, Geography, and Information (INEGI) declined significantly under both presidents Ernesto Zedillo (1994-2000) and Vicente Fox (2000-2006). Under Zedillo, the number of intentional homicides declined fairly steadily from 15,839 in 1994 to 10,737 in 2000, totaling 80,311 homicides. The annual number of homicides fluctuated somewhat under Fox, but continued to decline generally, with a total of 60,162 homicides. Moreover, the number of homicides actually reached a record low of 8,867 intentional homicides in 2007, the first full year in office for Felipe Calderon (2006-2012). Violence grew dramatically after 2008, with the number of homicides peaking in 2011. After Calderon's first year, the number of intentional homicides documented by INEGI climbed sharply, with year-over-year increases of more than 58% in 2008, 41% in 2009, 30% in 2010, and 5% in 2011. As predicted by last year's Justice in Mexico drug violence report, the number of intentional homicides documented by INEGI declined somewhat in 2012, Calderon's final year in office. Specifically, our March 2013 report predicted that INEGI would register a modest decline for 2012 (no greater than 8.5%). According to figures released in late-2013, the number of intentional homicides documented by INEGI for 2012 declined about 4% to 26,037. All told, throughout the Calderon administration, INEGI reported 121,669 homicides, an average of over 20,000 people per year, more than 55 people per day, or just over two people every hour. The total number of homicides appears to have declined by approximately 15% in 2013. While INEGI's figures are not available for 2013, preliminary data from Mexico's National Security System (SNSP) suggests that the total number of intentional homicides in 2013 declined again this year, and more than in 2012. However, some analysts are skeptical about SNSP's possible manipulation or withholding of data, so these findings should be viewed with caution. This said, at the time of this report, SNSP's tally of all intentional homicides in 2013 was 18,146, down 16.4% from about 21,700 in 2012. If the rate of decline is comparable for INEGI's tally, the total number of intentional homicides in 2012 INEGI will report for 2013 later this year will fall somewhere around 22,000 to 24,000 homicides. Mexico's recent violence is largely attributable to drug trafficking and organized crime. A large part of the sudden increase in violence in Mexico is attributable to drug trafficking and organized crime groups. Tallies compiled independently by media organizations in Mexico suggest that at least a third and as many as two-thirds of all intentional homicides in 2013 bore characteristics typical of organized-crime related killings, including the use of high-caliber automatic weapons, torture, dismemberment, and explicit messages involving organized crime groups. The Mexican newspaper Reforma put the figure at 7,163 organized-crime-style homicides in 2013 (though its coverage appeared to be less complete and less consistent with other sources than previous years), while Milenio reported 10,095 for the same year. Less violence in northern states has increased the spotlight on Pacific coastal states. In 2013, Mexico's violence - especially drug trafficking and organized-crime-style homicides - remained highly concentrated in specific regions, states, and municipalities. The elevated amounts and rates of violence were particularly concentrated in Mexico's Pacific coastal states, as violence in Northern states has diminished significantly. One exception in the north is Baja California, which saw a 31% increase in homicides, particularly as the city of Tijuana saw an increase in violence that ran counter to the significant declines elsewhere in the country. Community self-defense groups grew stronger in Guerrero, Michoacan, and other states. In 2012 and early 2013, public frustration with violence manifested itself in the form of armed community self-defense groups (autodefensas) in states like Guerrero and Michoacan. Particularly in Michoacan, where their presence has expanded into at least 29 of the state's 113 municipalities, such groups grabbed national and international headlines in early 2013 because of their direct clashes with the Knights Templar Organization (Caballeros Templarios, or KTO), a splinter organization that broke from the La Familia Michoacan (LFM) organization in 2010. There are concerns that self defense groups may have ties to organized crime groups and/or engage in acts of vigilante violence, and the Mexican government has tried to set parameters and restrictions on the use of firearms by such groups, so far with mixed results. President Pena Nieto continued to arrest major drug traffickers in 2013 and early 2014. On the campaign trail during 2012, Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto (2012-2018) had pledged to reduce the government's reliance on the counter-drug strategies employed by the Calderon administration. However, with just over one year in office, President Pena Nieto has continued the previous administration's policies, including a heavy reliance on the military and the targeted arrest of major organized crime figures. This paid off in a number of important successes, including the arrest of Miguel Angel "Z-40" Trevino (head of Los Zetas) and Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman (head of the Sinaloa Cartel). In March 2014, the Pena Nieto administration also announced that Mexican authorities had killed two top KTO leaders: Nazario Moreno Gonzalez, a.k.a. "El Chayo," who had been previously presumed dead, and Enrique "El Kike" Plancarte Solis. Recent organized crime arrests have not appeared to produce large spikes in violence. Some experts say that destroying leadership structures leads to greater violence because it contributes to infighting, splintering, and/or encroachment by rival criminal organizations. However, compared to previous years, the Mexican government's arrests of high-level members of organized crime groups have not resulted in such dramatic surges in violence due to infighting, splintering, or encroachment by rival criminal organizations. This may be attributable to a number of factors, including the dwindling size and capacity of criminal organizations in Mexico, the reduction in competition over drug production and trafficking routes, and/or the possible collusion of government officials to broker a peace. U.S.-Mexico security cooperation continues under the framework of the Merida Initiative. At the outset of the Pena Nieto administration, U.S. officials reportedly expressed concerns about the more centralized, "single window" (ventanilla unica) approach of Pena Nieto's administration to bi-national cooperation. However, while the protocols for such cooperation have changed, U.S.-Mexico cooperation has continued across all four "pillars" of the framework established under the Merida Initiative: 1) dismantling organized crime groups, 2) strengthening judicial sector institutions, 3) building a 21st century border, and 4) fostering resilient communities. Mexican security efforts appear more focused on prevention and criminal justice reform. While President Pena Nieto continued the same strategies of the previous administration during his first year in office, he also began to emphasize crime prevention and judicial system reform more strongly than in the past. Important initiatives in this regard include the creation of a new agency for crime prevention headed by Roberto Campa, as well as the introduction of a new, unified federal code of criminal procedure. The creation and training of a much-touted National Gendarmerie and a more unified police command system moved to the back burner but are still ongoing. Concerted implementation and evaluation efforts will be critical to the success of these initiatives. The drug war's future appears somewhat uncertain given changes in U.S. drug policy. Measures to legalize marijuana in 2013 in Uruguay and in two U.S. states - Colorado and Washington - have raised new questions about the future of the drug war. While public support for legalization of other drugs is very low, over half of the U.S. public now supports marijuana legalization. Legalization of marijuana will likely increase its availability and reduce its price, thereby reducing its profitability for the organized crime groups that currently produce, transport, and purvey it on the black market. While this will seriously diminish the capacity of organized crime groups in Mexico, it could also lead to innovation in their criminal activities to make up for lost revenue and other problems.

Details: San Diego: Justice in Mexico Project, University of San Diego, 2014. 59p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 10, 2014 at: http://justiceinmexico.files.wordpress.com/2014/04/140415-dvm-2014-releasered1.pdf

Year: 2014

Country: Mexico

URL: http://justiceinmexico.files.wordpress.com/2014/04/140415-dvm-2014-releasered1.pdf

Shelf Number: 147748

Keywords:
Drug-Related Violence (Mexico)
Drugs and Crime
Homicides
Organized Crime
Violent Crime

Author: United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)

Title: Afghanistan: Survey of Commercial Cannabis Cultivation and Production 2012

Summary: The 2012 Survey of Commercial Cannabis Cultivation and Production estimated the total area under cultivation in 2012 at 10,000 hectares and a potential production of 1,400 tons. These figures only include commercial, mono-crop cannabis cultivation as the survey tool cannot capture small-scale "kitchen garden" cultivation of cannabis, which is often for localized and/or personal use and is thought to account for only a small percentage of total production. - In contrast to previous surveys, the 2012 survey consisted of only two instead of three components: an area survey using satellite imagery and a yield survey. There was no socioeconomic village survey and the survey area was reduced. - In 2012, the estimated area under commercial cannabis cultivation declined by 17% compared to 2011; however, the area covered by the survey was reduced compared to 2011, which reduces the comparability of the two area estimates. - Due to higher per-hectare yields, production increased by 8% compared to 2011. - The decrease in cultivation is mainly attributed to lower levels of cannabis cultivation in Uruzgan province. The area under cannabis cultivation in Uruzgan decreased drastically from more than 1,000 hectares in 2011 to less than 100 hectares in 2012. According to reports from the field, the reason for the reduction was a strictly enforced ban by provincial authorities, which was imposed because cannabis fields seemed to have been used by insurgent groups as hiding places. - In the remaining 15 provinces surveyed, no major changes in cannabis cultivation were observed in 2012 and the 2012 levels of cultivation in these provinces are considered to be stable compared to 2011. - The main reason for the increase in potential production in spite of a decline in cultivation is the better yield of cannabis garda compared to 2011. In 2012, the national average of garda yield (all qualities) was 136 kg/ha, an increase by 21% when compared to 2011 (112 kg/ha). Levels of cannabis garda yield are nearly as high as they have been in 2009 (145 kg/ha). - The MCN/UNODC price monitoring showed that the cannabis prices have declined in 2012 after a price hike in 2011, in parallel to the opium price trends. Despite this, cannabis cultivation is still financially very attractive. In 2012, farmers potentially achieved a gross income of US$ 6,400 per hectare from cannabis resin, which was higher than the gross income from opium (US$ 4,600 per hectare) in the same year.

Details: Vienna: UNODC, 2013. 30p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 25, 2014 at: https://www.unodc.org/documents/crop-monitoring/Afghanistan/_Afghanistan_Cannabis_Survey_Report_2012.pdf

Year: 2013

Country: Afghanistan

URL: https://www.unodc.org/documents/crop-monitoring/Afghanistan/_Afghanistan_Cannabis_Survey_Report_2012.pdf

Shelf Number: 129922

Keywords:
Cannabis (Afghanistan)
Drugs and Crime
Marijuana

Author: Enamorado, Ted

Title: Income Inequality and Violent Crime: Evidence from Mexico's Drug War

Summary: The relationship between income inequality and crime has attracted the interest of many researchers, but little convincing evidence exists on the causal effect of inequality on crime in developing countries. This paper estimates this effect in a unique context: Mexico's Drug War. The analysis takes advantage of a unique data set containing inequality and crime statistics for more than 2,000 Mexican municipalities covering a period of 20 years. Using an instrumental variable for inequality that tackles problems of reverse causality and omitted variable bias, this paper finds that an increment of one point in the Gini coefficient translates into an increase of more than 10 drug-related homicides per 100,000 inhabitants between 2006 and 2010. There are no significant effects before 2005. The fact that the effect was found during Mexico's Drug War and not before is likely because the cost of crime decreased with the proliferation of gangs (facilitating access to knowledge and logistics, lowering the marginal cost of criminal behavior), which, combined with rising inequality, increased the expected net benefit from criminal acts after 2005.

Details: Washington, DC: The World Bank, Latin America and the Caribbean Region, Poverty Reduction and Economic Management Unit, 2014. 31p.

Source: Internet Resource: Policy Research Working Paper no. 6935: Accessed January 20, 2015 at: http://www-wds.worldbank.org/external/default/WDSContentServer/IW3P/IB/2014/06/24/000158349_20140624090206/Rendered/PDF/WPS6935.pdf

Year: 2014

Country: Mexico

URL: http://www-wds.worldbank.org/external/default/WDSContentServer/IW3P/IB/2014/06/24/000158349_20140624090206/Rendered/PDF/WPS6935.pdf

Shelf Number: 134419

Keywords:
Drug Trafficking
Drugs and Crime
Inequality and Crime
Poverty (Mexico)
Socioeconomic Conditions and Crime
War on Drugs

Author: Vazquez, Pedro

Title: Residents' Feelings and Interpretation of the Open-Air Drug Market in Conkey and Clifford Neighborhood of Rochester, New York

Summary: Low-level drug dealers thrive where they do not conflict with legitimate businesses, but rather support and are supported by certain elements of their environment (Thomas J. Charron, Debra Whitcomb, & George Ross, 2004, pg. 3). According to T. Charron, D. Whitcomb, & G. Ross (2004), dimly lit parking lots, alleys, abandoned buildings, bars, and roads that allow drivers to slow down or stop are some of the elements of the environment that support low-level drug dealers. Low-level drug dealing in open-air markets generates or contributes to a wide range of social disorder and drug-related crime in the surrounding neighborhood that can also have an effect on the residents' quality of life (Alex Harocopos & Mike Hough, 2005). The purpose of this paper is to gain an understanding of how residents in the Conkey and Clifford neighborhood in Rochester, New York have been affected by the open-air marijuana market, as well as their view of their neighborhood. The Rochester Drug Free Street Initiative (RDFSI) coalition has been working with residents in the Conkey and Clifford neighborhood to bring to an end the marketing of low-level drugs in their neighborhood. The RDFSI is implementing two approaches, which is led by Ibero-American Development Corporation (IADC), the H.O.P.E project and other committed local partners. The intervention, which is known as INSPIRE (Invested, Neighbors, Seeking, Progress, Inspiration, Restoration, & Empowerment), is being run by RDFSI staff and community members. The RDFSI is applying the two civil approaches to a two- tiered strategy. First is the Restorative Practices Strategy: working with PiRI (Partners in Restorative Initiatives,) neighborhood residents, and other community providers. RDFSI created what is being known as "Restorative Community Circles"; here people who are currently selling marijuana on the street can meet with other community members who want to help them transition into productive community members. This process creates a safe space for those who inform dealers how drug sales are affecting them and their families. The second strategy involves a stay-away order. RDFSI staff knows that not all dealers will be receptive to the restorative community circle process, but residents still need to be protected from those who continue to sell marijuana in their neighborhoods. The order will assist in interrupting the sale of marijuana by extricating the dealers from their geographical market. Residents have asked, "Why haven't the police done anything about drug dealers?" Police officers have a hard task when it comes to arresting low-level drug dealers. Marijuana has been decriminalized in New York State, which means that any individual found with less than an ounce of marijuana will not be arrested, charged, or face any jail time. These individual will only face a violation, which is punishable by a fine of $25.00 or less. Parking on the wrong side of the street is a much more serious violation than that of a violation for marijuana possession of less than an ounce, as alternate parking fines are $50.00 in the City. This is why police officers have limited power in handling the issues of open-air drug markets. This paper will highlight the answers to the survey conducted by RDFSI during the Rochester T.I.P.S event. Project T.I.P.S stand for Trust, Information, Programs & Services, the projects includes community agencies and law enforcement personnel working together in a selected neighborhood to rebuild trust amongst residents and share information. The answers to the "Your Voice" survey, which was construed by CPSI (Center for Public Safety Imitative) student researcher. This survey was giving to residents who are involved with RDFSI, and the information from the resident's focus group conducted by the RDFSI.

Details: Rochester, NY: Center for Public Safety Initiatives Rochester Institute of Technology, 2014. 17p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 21, 2015 at: https://www.rit.edu/cla/criminaljustice/sites/rit.edu.cla.criminaljustice/files/docs/WorkingPapers/2014/Conkey%20and%20Clifford%20Resident%20Surveys%20-%20MJ%20Market%20-%20WEBSITE%20VERSION.pdf

Year: 2014

Country: United States

URL: https://www.rit.edu/cla/criminaljustice/sites/rit.edu.cla.criminaljustice/files/docs/WorkingPapers/2014/Conkey%20and%20Clifford%20Resident%20Surveys%20-%20MJ%20Market%20-%20WEBSITE%20VERSION.pdf

Shelf Number: 135328

Keywords:
Drug Dealers
Drug Dealing
Drug Markets
Drug Offenders
Drugs and Crime

Author: Carvalho, Ilona Szabo de

Title: Citizen security rising: new approaches to addressing drugs, guns and violence in Latin America

Summary: Many Latin American states are facing epidemic levels of organised and interpersonal violence. This violence is attributed to a number of risk factors, even if the illegal drugs trade and punitive responses to trafficking are widely credited with being the principle drivers. Yet while trafficking in narcotics is commonly associated with insecurity, weakening governance and underdevelopment, drugs as such are not the central problem. Rather, it is competition between criminal factions for control over the trade and a protracted "war" declared against drugs that have ratcheted up insecurity from Mexico to Brazil. The outcomes of this four-decade-long war are at best uneven, with gains in one country overshadowed by severe declines in others. More optimistically, a regional debate is under way that is challenging the status quo with a more concerted focus on prevention and demand reduction. Latin American societies are beginning to explore alternative approaches to drug control tailored to regional and national needs and priorities. There is a visible shift toward a discourse that emphasises prevention and treats consumption as a public health issue, focuses repression on the most violent criminal organisations and redirects law enforcement toward harm reduction. The hope is that this may presage a turn toward investment in policies that are animated more by evidence than ideology.

Details: Oslo: Norwegian Peacebuilding Resource Centre (NOREF): 2013. 10p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 26, 2015 at: http://www.peacebuilding.no/var/ezflow_site/storage/original/application/061bc30adffa795e6a5e43bf664c8666.pdf

Year: 2013

Country: Latin America

URL: http://www.peacebuilding.no/var/ezflow_site/storage/original/application/061bc30adffa795e6a5e43bf664c8666.pdf

Shelf Number: 129717

Keywords:
Drug Abuse and Addiction
Drug Trafficking
Drug-Related Violence
Drugs and Crime
Gun Violence
War on Drugs

Author: Heinle, Kimberly

Title: Drug Violence in Mexico: Data and Analysis Through 2014

Summary: - Violence is lower in Mexico than elsewhere in the Americas, but average for the region. Levels of violence are relatively lower in Mexico than in several other countries in the Americas, but are about average for the Western Hemisphere. Mexico's 2012 homicide rate of 21.5 was just above the region's average of approximately 21.4 homicides per 100,000 people. However, this was up nearly threefold from Mexico's rate of 8.1 per 100,000 in 2007. No other country in the hemisphere has seen such a large increase in the number or rate of homicides over the last decade. - Homicides had been declining through the mid-2000s, reaching a record low in 2007. Continuing a long-term trend, the number of intentional homicides documented by Mexico's National Institute of Statistics, Geography, and Information (INEGI) declined significantly under both presidents Ernesto Zedillo (1994-2000) and Vicente Fox (2000-2006). Under Zedillo, the number of intentional homicides declined fairly steadily from 15,839 in 1994 to 10,737 in 2000, totaling 80,311 homicides. The annual number of homicides fluctuated somewhat under Fox, but continued to decline generally, with a total of 60,162 homicides. Moreover, the number of homicides actually reached a record low of 8,867 intentional homicides in 2007, the first full year in office for Felipe Calderon (2006-2012). - Violence grew dramatically after 2008, with the number of homicides peaking in 2011. After Calderon's first year, the number of intentional homicides documented by INEGI climbed sharply, with year-over-year increases of more than 58% in 2008, 41% in 2009, 30% in 2010, and 5% in 2011. As predicted by last year's Justice in Mexico drug violence report, the number of intentional homicides documented by INEGI declined somewhat in 2012, Calderon's final year in office. Specifically, our March 2013 report predicted that INEGI would register a modest decline for 2012 (no greater than 8.5%). According to figures released in late-2013, the number of intentional homicides documented by INEGI for 2012 declined about 4% to 26,037. All told, throughout the Calderon administration, INEGI reported 121,669 homicides, an average of over 20,000 people per year, more than 55 people per day, or just over two people every hour. - The total number of homicides appears to have declined by nearly 15% again in 2014. While INEGI's figures are not available for 2014, preliminary data from Mexico's National Security System (SNSP) suggests that the total number of intentional homicides in 2013 declined again this year by about the same proportion as in 2013. However, some analysts are skeptical about SNSP's data because of concerns about possible political manipulation by the Peea Nieto administration, so these findings should be viewed with caution. Keeping such concerns in mind, at the time of this report, SNSP's tally of all intentional homicides in 2014 was 15,649, down 13.8% from the 18,146 reported for 2013 the same time last year. The authors estimate a more modest rate of decline (about 9%) for INEGI's figures, to be released later in 2015. - Mexico's recent violence is largely attributable to drug trafficking and organized crime. A large part of the sudden increase in violence in Mexico is attributable to drug trafficking and organized crime groups. Tallies compiled independently by media organizations in Mexico suggest that at least a third and as many as half of all intentional homicides in 2014 bore characteristics typical of organized-crime related killings, including the use of high-caliber automatic weapons, torture, dismemberment, and explicit messages involving organized-crime groups. The Mexican newspaper Reforma put the figure at 6,400 organized-crime-style homicides in 2014 (though its coverage appeared to be less complete and less consistent with other sources than previous years), while Milenio reported 7,993 for the year. - Amid declining violence, serious security crises continued in central & Pacific states. Even amid the overall reduction in violence, there were serious security crises in central and Pacific states, notably the states of Guerrero, Mexico, and Michoacan. In early 2014, clashes broke out between the Knights Templar Organization (Caballeros Templarios, or KTO) and local "self-defense" (autodefensa) groups in Michoacan, causing the federal government to intervene and deputize some self-defense groups, creating official Rural Defense Forces. In late 2014, there were a series of violent crackdowns by authorities that resulted in the deaths of scores of people - including both alleged criminals and innocent civilians - in the states of Mexico and Guerrero, provoking national and international condemnations. In particular, when municipal authorities in the town of Iguala, Guerrero allegedly turned over dozens of student protestors to a local organized crime group known as the Guerreros Unidos, the perceived corruption and ineptitude of government officials led to massive protests and even acts of violence throughout the country. - The Mexican government arrested major drug traffickers, including "El Chapo" Guzman. Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto (2012-2018) has continued the previous administration's efforts to arrest major organized crime figures. In early 2014, the Pena Nieto administration succeeded in arresting Mexico's most notorious drug trafficker Joaqu�n "El Chapo" Guzman (head of the Sinaloa Cartel). In 2014, federal authorities also eliminated key leaders of the Knights Templar Organization, killing Nazario Moreno Gonzalez, a.k.a. "El Chayo" (who had been previously presumed dead) and Enrique "El Kike" Plancarte Solis. In early 2015, authorities continued to make important arrests targeting the Knights Templar Organization, the Gulf Cartel, the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion, and the Zetas. - Recent organized crime arrests have not appeared to produce large spikes in violence. Some experts say that destroying leadership structures leads to greater violence because it contributes to infighting, splintering, and/or encroachment by rival criminal organizations. However, compared to previous years, the Mexican government's arrests of high-level members of organized crime groups have not resulted in such dramatic surges in violence due to infighting, splintering, or encroachment by rival criminal organizations. This may be attributable to a number of factors, including the dwindling size and capacity of criminal organizations in Mexico, the reduction in competition over drug production and trafficking routes, and/or the possible collusion of government officials to broker a peace. - Mexican security efforts appear more focused on prevention and criminal justice reform. While President Pena Nieto continued the same strategies of the previous administration during his first year in office, he also began to emphasize crime prevention and judicial system reform more strongly than in the past. Indeed, both the federal and state governments have moved into high gear in the effort to transition Mexico to a new oral, adversarial criminal procedure - popularly referred to as "oral trials" (juicios orales) - that proponents believe will provide greater transparency, efficiency, and fairness in the Mexican criminal justice system. In 2014, the Pena Nieto administration moved these efforts forward considerably by approving a Unified Code of Criminal Procedure that will be implemented at the federal and state levels throughout the country by June 2016.

Details: San Diego: Justice in Mexico Project, University of San Diego, 2015. 60p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed July 23, 2015 at: https://justiceinmexico.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/2015-Drug-Violence-in-Mexico-final.pdf

Year: 2015

Country: Mexico

URL: https://justiceinmexico.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/2015-Drug-Violence-in-Mexico-final.pdf

Shelf Number: 136142

Keywords:
Drug Trafficking
Drug-Related Violence (Mexico)
Drugs and Crime
Homicides
Organized Crime
Violent Crime

Author: Felbab-Brown, Vanda

Title: Assessment of the Implementation of the United States Government's Support for Plan Colombia's Illicit Crop Reduction Components

Summary: This study provides an assessment of the success to date of Counter-Narcotics (CN) efforts under Plan Colombia along with a set of recommendations for the United States Government (USG) to strengthen future CN efforts directed at increasing security, decreasing coca cultivation and cocaine, and opium poppy and heroin production in Colombia. Plan Colombia commenced in 1999 as a multi-year effort to stem a decades' long spiral towards domestic violence, fueled by narcotics funding resulting from an increasingly robust drug industry. Plan Colombia provided funding to support increased security and counternarcotics efforts, and to address issues of rural development, rule of law, human rights, and support for displaced persons. The assessment was carried out by a team of specialists in economic policy, alternative development, law and security and comparative drug control. The team reviewed documents and secondary literature, conducted interviews with relevant US and Government of Colombia (GOC), local officials, development workers, representatives of national agencies, farmers, farm association officials and other stakeholders. It undertook three site visits, in South of Bolivar (Sur de Bolivar), in Macarena (Meta) and in Narino. In all three sites, team members conducted focus groups made up of local officials, representatives of national ministries, members of farmer associations and farmers. The team also used economic regressions and simulations to assist its analyses. The team examined the history of Plan Colombia, reviewed performance in areas such as implementation of alternative development, impact of eradication, cost effectiveness, improvements in security, and socio-economic aspects of state presence. The report looks at approaches to adjusting performance measures for CN programs. With a view toward formulating recommendations for the future, the report presents analyses of lessons that could be drawn from the significant reduction in poppy cultivation, the role of alternative development and the involvement of citizens and local governments in coca reduction. The report examines the internal balloon effect as that influences the geographic dispersion of coca cultivation. Finally, the report reviews various elements of rural development and agricultural policy as well as providing an estimation of the extent that families in rural areas are vulnerable to participating in coca cultivation. (Vulnerable families are defined as families in coca growing areas that share the socioeconomic characteristics of existing coca farmers.)

Details: Washington, DC: Management Systems International, 2009. 177p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 4, 2015 at: http://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/PDACN233.pdf

Year: 2009

Country: Colombia

URL: http://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/PDACN233.pdf

Shelf Number: 136307

Keywords:
Cocaine
Drug Enforcement
Drug Police
Drug Trafficking
Drugs and Crime
Heroin
Plan Colombia

Author: Negroponte, Diana Villiers

Title: Pillar IV of Beyond Merida: Addressing the Socio-Economic Causes of Drug Related Crime and Violence in Mexico

Summary: The 'Merida Initiative' and its successor 'Beyond Merida' form an integral part of the Mexican National Crime Strategy that seeks to contain, if not defeat narcotics trafficking, organized crime and the consequential violence. Elaborated in October 2009, both governments announced the second phase in early 2010. Broader than the 'Merida Initiative,' 'Beyond Merida' proposes four categories, known as 'Pillars,' some of which directly involve the U.S. government agencies and others which imply collaboration. - Pillar I. Disrupting and dismantling criminal organizations . - Pillar II. Strengthen state institutions, i.e. law enforcement, the judiciary and correctional institutions to reduce public insecurity and provide better serve Mexican citizens. - Pillar III. Develop a "smart border" with the U.S. so as to facilitate trade and overcome the bottlenecks currently choking the U.S./Mexico border. - Pillar IV. Address the social and economic factors contributing to the violence and seek to build strong and resilient communities that can withstand the pressures of crime and violence. This article examines U.S. and Mexican government efforts to develop Pillar IV. It also recognizes programs that Mexico commenced in 2010 to focus seriously on the socio-economic causes of violence in the northern cities, Ciudad Juarez and Monterrey. This article addresses the effectiveness of current bilateral programs and asks what changes might be made to increase the impact in the short and long term.

Details: Washington, DC: Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Mexico Institute, 2011. 19p.

Source: Internet Resource: Working Paper Series on U.S.-Mexico Security Cooperation: Accessed August 4, 2015 at: http://www.wilsoncenter.org/sites/default/files/Merida%20-%20Pillar%20IV%20Working%20Paper%20Format1_1.pdf

Year: 2011

Country: Mexico

URL: http://www.wilsoncenter.org/sites/default/files/Merida%20-%20Pillar%20IV%20Working%20Paper%20Format1_1.pdf

Shelf Number: 136310

Keywords:
Drug Trafficking
Drug-Related Violence
Drugs and Crime
Merida Initiative
Socioeconomic Conditions and Crime

Author: Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services

Title: Jail-Based Substance Abuse Programs

Summary: The Virginia Compensation Board conducts a survey of jails each year to gather information on inmates with mental illness. Some information on inmates with substance abuse disorders is also gathered, and included in the annual report. The most common treatment provided for inmates with substance abuse disorders is group substance abuse treatment, which the Compensation Board's 2013 Mental Illness in Jails Report defines as: "Meeting of a group of individuals with a substance abuse clinician for the purpose of providing psycho education about various substance abuse topics and/or to provide group feedback and support with regard to substance abuse issues. Examples could include AA meeting, NA meeting, or relapse prevention groups." In July 2013, for the 58 (out of 64) local and regional jails that responded to the Compensation Board's survey, 30.7% of the jail population had a known or suspected substance abuse disorder, almost of half of whom had a co-occurring mental illness. Unfortunately, according to the Compensation Board survey results, only about 20% of inmates with a substance abuse disorder receive group substance abuse treatment. It may be that others are receiving other services not counted in this survey; group substance abuse treatment is the only substance abuse service included in the Compensation Board survey. To provide additional data on jail substance abuse programs, DCJS is currently surveying jails regarding their substance abuse populations and treatment services. Data from this survey are not ready at this time, but the results will be published when the study is complete.

Details: Richmond: Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services, 2014. 92p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 5, 2015 at: https://www.dcjs.virginia.gov/research/documents/Kingdom%20Life%20Report_FINAL.pdf

Year: 2014

Country: United States

URL: https://www.dcjs.virginia.gov/research/documents/Kingdom%20Life%20Report_FINAL.pdf

Shelf Number: 136677

Keywords:
Drug Offenders
Drugs and Crime
Jail Inmates
Mental Illness
Mentally Ill Offenders
Substance Abuse
Substance Abuse Treatment

Author: Ajzenman, Nicolas

Title: On the Distributed Costs of Drug-Related Homicides

Summary: Reliable estimates of the effects of violence on economic outcomes are scarce. We exploit the many-fold increase in homicides in 2008-2011 in Mexico resulting from its war on organized drug traffickers to estimate the effect of drug-related homicides on house prices. We use an unusually rich dataset that provides national coverage on house prices and homicides and exploit within-municipality variations. We find that the impact of violence on housing prices is borne entirely by the poor sectors of the population. An increase in homicides equivalent to one standard deviation leads to a 3% decrease in the price of low-income housing. In spite of this large burden on the poor, the willingness to pay in order to reverse the increase in drug-related crime is not high. We estimate it to be approximately 0.1% of Mexico's GDP.

Details: Washington, DC: Center for Global Development, 2014. 50p.

Source: Internet Resource: Working Paper 364: Accessed January 28, 2016 at: http://www.cgdev.org/sites/default/files/distributive-costs-drug-related-homicides_0.pdf

Year: 2014

Country: Mexico

URL: http://www.cgdev.org/sites/default/files/distributive-costs-drug-related-homicides_0.pdf

Shelf Number: 132248

Keywords:
Drug Trafficking
Drug Violence
Drug-Related Violence
Drugs and Crime
Economics of Crime
Homicides
Organized Crime

Author: European Monitoring Centre for Drugs

Title: EU Drug Markets Report: In-depth analysis

Summary: The report illustrates the widespread impacts of drug markets, how they are related to other criminal activities, create a strain on government institutions and have a serious impact on legitimate business and the wider economy, not to mention the negative consequences for neighbourhoods, families and individuals. We show how the drugs business and the organised crime groups controlling it reach into many corners of society, from vulnerable migrants exploited as a workforce for cannabis cultivation to officials in public office exposed to the influence of corruption. We present the dynamics and trends that exist in the main drug markets in the EU, from production to the consumer and all points in between, whilst not forgetting that external factors, such as the on-going instability within some neighbouring regions, can have potentially profound effects on the drug situation in Europe. The report goes on to briefly highlight some of the strategic responses, institutional frameworks and operational actions or initiatives in place to tackle the issue.

Details: Lisbon: EMCDDA, 2016. 190p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 11, 2016 at: https://www.europol.europa.eu/content/eu-drug-markets-report-2016

Year: 2016

Country: Europe

URL: https://www.europol.europa.eu/content/eu-drug-markets-report-2016

Shelf Number: 138618

Keywords:
Drug Abuse and Addiction
Drug Markets
Drugs and Crime
Illegal Drugs

Author: Buhringer, Gerhard

Title: Comparative Analysis of Research into Illicit Drugs in the European Union: Full report

Summary: The study was commissioned by the European Commission's Directorate-General for Justice, Freedom and Security (Justice-Liberte-Securite; DG JLS) with the following six objectives: (1) To map the key research areas, research disciplines and recent research trends, covering both drug demand and drug supply reduction, taking into account any important interrelations with related thematic areas (i.e. mental health and addiction, licit substance abuse, etc.). (2) To map and analyse the capacity, infrastructure and model of coordination of drug-related research in the member states (MS). An analysis of the participation of the national research communities in EU programmes should also be conducted. (3) To map and analyse the capacity, infrastructure and coordination of illicit drug-related research at European and international level, taking into account the drug-related research activities of the Pompidou Group of the Council of Europe and the World Health Organisation as well as the activities of significant private or semi-private research bodies. (4) To briefly describe - for comparative purposes - the drug-related research trends, capacity, infrastructure and model of coordination in the US, Canada and Australia as well as major research collaborations in the drug field with EU partners. (5) To identify strengths and weaknesses in EU drug-related research as well as gaps in the knowledge infrastructure in this field, always bearing in mind that the focus of this study covers both supply and demand of illicit drugs. (6) To assess options for strengthening - if necessary - the drug-related research infrastructure in EU.

Details: Luxembourg : Publications Office, 2009.507p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 3, 2016 at: http://ec.europa.eu/justice/anti-drugs/files/drug-research-study-report_en.pdf

Year: 2009

Country: Europe

URL: http://ec.europa.eu/justice/anti-drugs/files/drug-research-study-report_en.pdf

Shelf Number: 138902

Keywords:
Drug Abuse and Addiction
Drug Enforcement
Drugs and Crime
Illegal Drugs
Illicit Drugs

Author: O'Neil, Shannon K.

Title: Mexico on the Brink

Summary: The headlines don't mislead. Mexican society is reeling from the collateral damage of the permanent war on drugs in the Americas, as crime cartels duke it out for control of illicit exports to the US. Indeed, high levels of violence largely explain why Mexico ranked 104th out of 142 countries in the Safety and Security category in the 2013 Legatum Prosperity Index - and why, in spite of a very high ranking (27th) in the Economy category, the country is only 59th in the overall prosperity ranking. But that's just one element of the story of contemporary Mexico. Here, Shannon O'Neil, a senior fellow for Latin American Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations (and author of the new book, Two Nations Indivisible: Mexico, the United States, and the Road Ahead), focuses on Mexico's progress in escaping what development economists call the "middle-income trap". In the early 1980s, Mexico began to shake off the political and economic torpor created by one-party, Tammany Hallstyle rule and self-imposed isolation from the competitive pressures of a rapidly integrating global economy. Reform was initially forced on the country as a condition for relief from the consequences of default on its foreign loans. But it triggered a series of secondary tremors that shook the domestic economic and political landscape, leading first to the free trade agreement with the US and Canada, and then to the opening of the political system to interests that had no stake in preserving a bloated, bureaucratic government and corrupt, state-owned enterprises. O'Neil picks up the story from there. Arguably the least understood aspect of Mexico's coming of age, she suggests, is the role played by global supply chains in manufacturing. Mexico's combination of competitively priced labour, proximity to the US and Canada, and market-friendly regulation has led to an unprecedented degree of integration between the three economies, powering the growth of Mexico's middle-class. O'Neil makes it clear that the path forward is not strewn with roses, however. Organised crime still makes life terrifying for millions on a daily basis. Public services - in particular, public education - remain inadequate to meet the challenge of creating a workforce the equal of, say, the US or Northern Europe. The national oil monopoly is still corrupt, poorly managed and woefully lacking in modern technology. But by O'Neil's reading, Mexico really does have a shot at joining the elite club of rich, democratic nations.

Details: London: Legatum Institute, 2013. 19p.

Source: Internet Resource: Prosperity in Depth: Mexico: Accessed May 13, 2016 at: https://lif.blob.core.windows.net/lif/docs/default-source/country-growth-reports/pid-mexico-2013---mexico-on-the-brink.pdf?sfvrsn=0

Year: 2013

Country: Mexico

URL: https://lif.blob.core.windows.net/lif/docs/default-source/country-growth-reports/pid-mexico-2013---mexico-on-the-brink.pdf?sfvrsn=0

Shelf Number: 139017

Keywords:
Drug Trafficking
Drug-Related Violence
Drugs and Crime
Homicides
Organized Crime
Socioeconomic Conditions and Crime
Violence
Violent Crime

Author: Rivera, Echo A.

Title: The Relationship Between Intimate Partner Violence and Substance Use: An Applied Research Paper

Summary: This applied research paper provides an overview of recent studies on the relationship between substance use and experiencing intimate partner violence (IPV), including the prevalence of co-existing substance use and IPV. While there is some evidence suggesting a relationship between experiencing IPV and substance use, solely focusing on IPV and substance use may be misleading in its simplicity. Given that, this paper describes factors that may mediate the relationship between substance use and IPV, as well as caveats and cautions for interpreting this body of research. This paper offers recommendations for substance use disorder treatment providers, as well as ways that future research can provide a more nuanced and comprehensive understanding of the relationship between IPV and substance use.

Details: Chicago: National Center on Domestic Violence, Trauma and Mental Health, 2016. 29p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 16, 2016 at: http://www.nationalcenterdvtraumamh.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/IPV-SAB-Final202.29.1620NO20LOGO.pdf

Year: 2016

Country: United States

URL: http://www.nationalcenterdvtraumamh.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/IPV-SAB-Final202.29.1620NO20LOGO.pdf

Shelf Number: 139051

Keywords:
Domestic Violence
Drugs and Crime
Intimate Partner Violence
Substance Abuse

Author: United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)

Title: World Drug Report 2016

Summary: The World Drug Report 2016 comes at a decisive moment, just months after Member States, at a special session of the General Assembly, adopted a comprehensive set of operational recommendations on the world drug problem. The session was only the third in the history of the General Assembly to focus on drugs, and the resulting outcome document, entitled "Our joint commitment to effectively addressing and countering the world drug problem", provides a concrete way forward to take action on shared challenges. In the outcome document, Member States reaffirmed their commitment to addressing persistent, new and evolving challenges in line with the three international drug control conventions, which were recognized as allowing States parties sufficient flexibility to design and implement national drug policies consistent with the principle of common and shared responsibility. The operational recommendations contained in the outcome document encompass measures to address demand and supply reduction, as well as to improve access to controlled medicines while preventing their diversion; they cover human rights, youth, children, women and communities and highlight emerging challenges and the need to promote long-term, comprehensive, sustainable, development-oriented and balanced drug control policies and programmes that include alternative development. The text highlights the importance of drug abuse prevention and treatment; encourages the development, adoption and implementation of alternative or additional measures with regard to conviction or punishment; and promotes proportionate national sentencing policies, practices and guidelines for drug-related offences. Now the international community must come together to make good on its commitments. The World Drug Report 2016, which provides a comprehensive overview of major developments in drug markets, trafficking routes and the health impact of drug use, supports comprehensive, balanced and integrated rights-based approaches. This year's report offers insight into the wide-ranging impact of drugs not only on the health and well-being of individuals, but also on the people around them - families and communities. This can include such harms as HIV, as well as the threat of violence, faced in particular by women and children.

Details: New York: UNODC, 2016. 174p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed June 28, 2016 at: https://www.unodc.org/doc/wdr2016/WORLD_DRUG_REPORT_2016_web.pdf

Year: 2016

Country: International

URL: https://www.unodc.org/doc/wdr2016/WORLD_DRUG_REPORT_2016_web.pdf

Shelf Number: 139529

Keywords:
Drug Abuse and Crime
Drug Abuse Prevention
Drug Reform
Drug Trafficking
Drug-Related Violence
Drugs and Crime

Author: New York City Department of Investigation

Title: NYPD and NYCHA's Roles in Controlling Violent and Narcotics Crime By Removing Criminal Offenders from Public Housing

Summary: Since 1996, the New York City Police Department (NYPD) and New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) have operated under a joint public safety agreement requiring NYPD to inform NYCHA of arrests of NYCHA residents, or on NYCHA property, so that NYCHA can then take steps to keep dangerous criminals out of public housing. NYPD has failed to comply with this agreement in that it does not routinely inform NYCHA of arrests, eve n where they involve sexual assault, gun possession, or n arcotics trafficking. In turn , even when informed of such arrests, NYCHA often fails to take steps to remove such criminals from public housing and thus protect the overwhelming majority of law abid ing residents. These systemic failures documented by a Department of Investigation review of thousands of files have contributed to disproportionately high violent crime rates at NYCHA, including a shooting incidence rate that is four times higher tha n in the City as a whole. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY In 1996, N YPD and NYCHA entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) , through which NYPD agreed to provide NYCHA with all arrest and complaint reports concerning criminal activity taking place at NYCHA dev elopments, or committed by NYCHA residents. The purpose of the MOU is to enable NYCHA, the largest landlord in New York City, to undertake its critical obligation to maintain safety and security at public housing developments by monitoring criminal activ ity at public housing developments , evict ing criminal offenders where needed to protect public safety, and address ing physical security vulnerabilities highlighted in these reports. After several incidents in which crimes were committed on NYCHA property by known felons, the New York City Department of Investigation (DOI) conducted a proactive investigation to determine NYPD's compliance with the 1996 MOU. This led to a further investigation of NYCHA's efforts to evict or exclude individuals and families whose criminal activities pose a threat to their neighbors. DOI's investigation revealed several key failures by both NYPD and NYCHA: 1) NYPD is out of compliance with the MOU because it does not provide NYCHA with NYPD complaint reports concerning NYCHA properties. 2) NYPD is also violating the MOU by failing to share with NYCHA reports of arrests of non - residents on NYCHA property. 3) Pursuant to Patrol Guide procedure known as "Cases For Legal Action" (CFLA) , NYPD is required to report to NYCHA all arrests of NYCHA residents on NYCHA property for certain enumerated serious violent and drug crimes . However, NYPD's actual compliance with this internal procedure in a sample one - month period was only 67% . As a res ult, NYCHA loses opportunities to address dangerous conditions by evicting or excluding residents who have committed violent crimes. 4) NYCHA , in turn, fails to take sufficient action to ensure that criminal offenders who pose a danger to their neighbors are removed from public housing. Specifically, NYCHA has a weak enforcement record of terminating tenancies based on criminal activity by public housing leaseholders or unauthorized occupants (dubbed "non - desirability" cases). 5) Longstanding NYCHA procedure known as "Permanent Exclusion" allows NYCHA to exercise discretion concerning NYPD Cases For Legal Action referrals. Specifically, although NYCHA has legal authority to evict the entire household of a criminal offender who presents a danger to neighbors' safety or peac eful tenancy, instead NYCHA may and frequently does opt for the less severe sanction of Permanent Exclusion of only the individual offender from the apartment, thus allowing possibly innocent household members to remain in public housing. DOI's investigation revealed that NYCHA's enforcement of Permanent Exclusion is essentially toothless, such that criminal offenders are allowed to return to NYCHA housing without consequences . 6) DOI further identified numerous critical flaws in NYCHA's systems and resources for enforcing Permanent Exclusion, including severe understaffing, inadequate safety equipment and protocols, an ineffective bureau cratic case management approach, and lack of coordination with law enforcement entities that could assist with meaningful enforcement of Permanent Exclusion, including by arresting excluded occupants subject to open warrants or Trespass Notices that prohibit their presence on NYCHA premises.

Details: New York: NYC Department of Investigation, 2015. 51p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 3, 2016 at: http://www.nyc.gov/html/doi/downloads/pdf/2015/Dec15/pr41nycha_nypd_mou_120815.pdf

Year: 2015

Country: United States

URL: http://www.nyc.gov/html/doi/downloads/pdf/2015/Dec15/pr41nycha_nypd_mou_120815.pdf

Shelf Number: 140148

Keywords:
Drug Trafficking
Drugs and Crime
Eviction
Housing and Crime
Public Housing
Violent Offenders

Author: Esposito, Carolina

Title: Analysis of the local context report DELIVERABLE 5

Summary: SPRING project aims to fight recidivism of drug related crimes committed by young people in urban contests, through the identification of best practices in alternative measures and treatment programs to detention for drug addicted offenders and prevention campaigns. WP 4 (Analysis of the local context) will aim to perform the country analysis and to report the general knowledge framework about the issues tackled by the project in each participating country (at national and local level): prevention of and fight against recidivism of drug related crimes. The country analysis for each participating country will be based on a literature review of scientific publications, official documents, laws, agreements and guidelines with reference to drug phenomenon and drug addiction and to alternative treatment programs to detention for drug addicted offenders (paying particular attention to experiences with music therapy) This research will concern the following points:  Demographic and socio-cultural analysis and description of drug phenomenon with particular reference to anti-social behaviour;  Legal and regulatory framework on drug and drug addiction;  National data about drug related crimes and drug addicted offenders;  Legislation in force, national and local agreements on the topics of:  health interventions in the field of addiction  social and health practices in the field of addiction  National data about health and social practices in the field of addiction;  Alternative measures to detention for drug addicted offenders;  National data about alternative measures and treatment programs to detention for drug addicted offenders. In order to highlight most clearly the general framework of each participating country, a SWOT analysis (Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) will be perform to provide a summary of the strength and weaknesses to be considered in the future phases of the project

Details: Valenza (AL): Spring Project, 2016? 160p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed November 2, 2016 at: http://www.spring-project.eu/upload/documenti/deliverables_spring/WP4_final_report-ENG.pdf

Year: 2016

Country: Europe

URL: http://www.spring-project.eu/upload/documenti/deliverables_spring/WP4_final_report-ENG.pdf

Shelf Number: 145775

Keywords:
Drug Abuse and Crime
Drug Addiction
Drug Treatment
Drugs and Crime
Recidivism

Author: Goldsmid, Susan

Title: Methamphetamine use and acquisitive crime: Evidence of a relationship

Summary: Methamphetamine use among Australian police detainees is rising; the impact of this rise on crime trends, and particularly on trends in acquisitive crime, is yet to be established. Identifying trends in and motivations for offending among methamphetamine users may assist law enforcement and policymakers to better target resources. This paper examines the engagement in acquisitive crime, and perceived motivations for methamphetaminedriven crime, of a sample of Australian police detainees recruited in 2013 through the Drug Use Monitoring in Australia program. Methamphetamine users reported deriving a significantly higher proportion of their income from crime than non-users. Logistic regression analysis reveals the use of methamphetamine, heroin and/or cannabis predicts engagement in acquisitive crime when other drug use and polydrug use is controlled for. In addition, methamphetamine users reported their use played a contributing role in their offending, most commonly through intoxication or the need for money to purchase drugs. The findings indicate recent methamphetamine use increases the risk of engagement in acquisitive offences.

Details: Canberra: Australian Institute of Criminology, 2016. 14p.

Source: Internet Resource: Trends & issues in crime and criminal justice no. 516: Accessed November 2, 2016 at: http://aic.gov.au/media_library/publications/tandi_pdf/tandi516.pdf

Year: 2016

Country: Australia

URL: http://aic.gov.au/media_library/publications/tandi_pdf/tandi516.pdf

Shelf Number: 145776

Keywords:
Acquisitive Crime
Drug Abuse and Addiction
Drug Offenders
Drugs and Crime
Methamphetamine
Property Crimes

Author: Kruithof, Kristy

Title: Study Alternatives to Coercive Sanctions as Response to Drug Law Offences and Drug-Related Crimes Final Report

Summary: This study aims to map alternatives to coercive sanctions (ACS) for drug law offences and drug-related crimes that are available under the law in each EU member state and describe the use of these sanctions in practice. This was complemented by a review of international research on the effectiveness of ACS in reducing reoffending and drug use. Building upon the EU Action Plan on Drugs 2013-2016, ACS were defined as measures that had some rehabilitative element or that constituted a non-intervention (for example, deciding not to charge or prosecute), as well as those used instead of prison or other punishment (for example, a suspended sentence with drug treatment). Further details of the measures included within the definition of ACS can be found in Section 1.2. This study builds upon a report produced by the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) in 2015 on alternatives to punishment for drug-using offenders, widening the scope of that study by including a broader range of sanctions and by looking at practice in each member state in more detail.

Details: Luxembourg: Publications office of the European Union, 2016. 144p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed November 3, 2016 at: https://www.rand.org/pubs/external_publications/EP66607.html

Year: 2016

Country: Europe

URL: https://www.rand.org/pubs/external_publications/EP66607.html

Shelf Number: 144995

Keywords:
Alternatives to Incarceration
Drug Abuse and Addiction
Drug Offenders
Drug Policy
Drugs and Crime
Illegal Drug Trade

Author: Mansfield, David

Title: Time to Move on: Developing an Informed Development Response to Opium Poppy Cultivation in Afghanistan

Summary: After almost 15 years since the fall of the Taliban, the policy discussion on counter-narcotics remains uncertain of which way to proceed. In large part, this is because policy discussion is shaped by a superficial or misguided understanding of opium poppy and its role in rural livelihoods. This is not surprising given the disconnect that policymakers and the international community in Kabul have from rural realities, in large part due to the inability to get out of Kabul or even their own compounds. Another part is the natural tendency to downplay or even ignore problems which appear to be intractable. Many of the policy proposals reflect past thinking which has not proven successful, most notably the search for a “silver bullet” or one single crop that can compete with opium poppy. This focus is in large part the result of the way in which data and analysis have been presented to policy makers, in particular the annual estimates of opium area and yield presented by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) along with its analysis of the reasons why farmers grow opium poppy. The most problematic aspects of that methodology are 1) the analysis of why farmers grow opium poppy, and 2) the assumption of a binary choice between wheat and opium poppy. Additional shortcomings are the limitations of the profit maximization model; drugs “fetishism”; focus on gross rather than net returns; endless search for the "silver bullet" (the single crop) which will replace opium poppy; assumption of a homogenous farmer; flawed survey methodology which relies on single responses and fails to correct for social desirability bias; and, lack of willingness to incorporate the work of others. The analysis in this report is based on fieldwork undertaken in the provinces of Balkh, Helmand, Kandahar and Nangarhar during the harvest and planting seasons of the 2014/15 and 2015/16 agricultural years. The analytical approach is based on the livelihoods framework in which opium poppy is seen as just one crop in a larger, complex system of agricultural commodities, livestock, and off-farm and non-farm income opportunities. More than a decade of fieldwork has allowed the incorporation of the effects of politics and power on farmers' decision-making, as well as questions of varying conditions, especially those that prevail in such vastly different areas as the former desert areas of the southwest. The current approach uses multiple methodologies, including extensive surveys of farmers in the field along with GIS and geo-spatial mapping which assists with research site selection and allows visualization of changes over time in settlements and cropping patterns. Analysis also distinguishes between use of household and hired labour (extremely important in a high-input crop such as opium poppy) and between owner cultivated land and sharecropped land. It reflects variations in fieldwork sites with respect to resources, infrastructure, access to markets and tenure arrangements, so as to capture the diversity in rural Afghanistan. Data collection utilized indirect questions in the field with farmers themselves, thereby avoiding the kind of speculation and bias that interviewing rural elites typically produces. Of course, the usual caveats associated with fieldwork in rural Afghanistan should be kept in mind, and this work should be seen as a "first cut" or "snapshot" that tries to capture conditions within a particular time frame. Fieldwork confirmed that, contrary to conventional wisdom, dramatic change is taking place in Afghanistan's rural economy, as farmers experiment with new varieties, complex cropping systems, and new technology such as chemicals and solar-powered water pumps. In part due to the development of transport and communication infrastructure, rural areas are more and more integrated with urban markets, and off-farm employment has become an increasingly important component of household livelihoods. Not all of this change is positive or sustainable in the long run, especially that which drains aquifers and potentially causes harm to humans, and much of it comes out of a desperate attempt to deal with adversity both agronomic and man-imposed. One of the most striking and consequential transformations is the settling of the former desert areas of south and southwest Afghanistan. The deserts have been made to bloom, although much of the flowering is opium poppy and it is not clear how sustainable life in the former desert will be.

Details: Kabul, Afghanistan: Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit, 2016. 82p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed November 7, 2016 at: http://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/1623E-Time%20to%20Move%20on-Developing%20an%20Informed%20Development%20Response%20to%20Opium%20Poppy%20Cultivation%20in%20Afghanistan.pdf

Year: 2016

Country: Afghanistan

URL: http://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/1623E-Time%20to%20Move%20on-Developing%20an%20Informed%20Development%20Response%20to%20Opium%20Poppy%20Cultivation%20in%20Afghanistan.pdf

Shelf Number: 148016

Keywords:
Drugs and Crime
Heroin
Narcotics
Opium Poppy Cultivation
Opium Production

Author: Heinle, Kimberly

Title: Drug Violence in Mexico: Data and Analysis Through 2016

Summary: This report examines trends in violence and organized crime in Mexico through 2016. Over the years, this series of Justice in Mexico special reports has compiled and attempted to reconcile often imperfect, confusing, and even conflicting information from both official and non-governmental sources regarding trends in violence and organized crime, and particularly "drug-related" violence. As the eighth annual report on Drug Violence in Mexico, this study compiles the latest available data and analysis of trends to help separate the signals from the noise to help better understand the facets, implications, and possible remedies to the ongoing crisis of violence, corruption, and human rights violations associated with the war on drugs. - Mexico has experienced dramatic increases in crime and violence in recent years. The number of intentional homicides documented by Mexico's National Institute of Statistics, Geography, and Information (INEGI) declined significantly under both presidents Ernesto Zedillo (1994-2000) and Vicente Fox (2000-2006), but rose dramatically a year after President Felipe Calderon (2006-2012) took office. All told, throughout the Calderon administration, INEGI reported 121,669 homicides, an average of over 20,000 people per year, more than 55 people per day, or just over two people every hour. No other country in the Western Hemisphere saw such a large increase either in its homicide rate or in the absolute number of homicides over the last two decades. - After a decline in 2012-2014, homicides began to rise again in 2015 and jumped 20% in 2016. Official homicide statistics from Mexico's National Security System (SNSP) registered significant decreases in 2012 (about 5%), in 2013 (about 16%), and in 2014 (about 15%), before climbing upwards again in 2015 (+7%) and 2016 (+22%). SNSP reported the number of intentional homicides at 18,650 in 2015 to 22,932 in 2016. The worsening of security conditions over the past two years has been a major setback for President Enrique Pena Nieto (2012-2018), who pledged to reduce violence dramatically during his administration. - In 2016, increases in cases of intentional homicide were registered in 24 states. Fueling the national increase in homicides were increases in 24 states. Notably, the largest increases were registered in Colima with a 600% increase from 2015 to 2016, Nayarit (500% increase), and Zacatecas (405% increase), all of which have an important role in drug production or trafficking and are contested by rival organized crime groups. Meanwhile, several states registered noticeable decreases, including Queretaro with a 69% decrease in intentional homicides and Campeche with a 24% decrease. - Local officials and journalists remained prime targets of violence in 2016. According to Justice in Mexico's Memoria dataset, seven current or former mayors were killed in 2016 (in comparison five mayoral candidates, two sitting mayors, and one former mayor were killed in 2015). Justice in Mexico also documented 11 journalists and media-support workers killed in 2016 in Mexico, continuing a slight downward trend from the 14 killed in 2015 and 15 killed in 2014. - Mexico's recent violence is largely attributable to drug trafficking and organized crime. What is particularly concerning about Mexico's sudden increases in homicides in recent years is that much or most of this elevated violence appears to be attributable to "organized crime" groups, particularly those involved in drug trafficking. While there are important methodological problems with compiling data on organized crime-related killings, tallies produced over the past decade by government, media, academic, NGO, and consulting organizations suggest that roughly a third to half of all homicides in Mexico bear signs of organized crime-style violence, including the use of high-caliber automatic weapons, torture, dismemberment, and explicit messages involving organized crime groups. In 2016, there was greater disparity in the estimated number of organized crime-style killings documented by some sources (6,325 according to Reforma newspaper and 10,967 according to Milenio), but the proportion of total homicides was at least 25% and perhaps greater than 40%. - "El Chapo" Guzman's arrest and extradition appear to be partly fueling violence. The notorious kingpin leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, Joaqu�n "El Chapo" Guzman, was arrested in early 2016. Guzman had been arrested previously in 2001, after which he escaped prison. He was then arrested in 2014, only to escape again in 2015. After the most recent arrest, demands for Guzman's extradition to the United States where he would face a 17- count indictment came to fruition. In early 2017, Guzman arrived in New York to face charges of organized crime, murder, and drug trafficking, among others. The analysis in this report suggests that a significant portion of Mexico's increases in violence in 2015 and 2016 were related to inter- and intra-organizational conflicts among rival drug traffickers in the wake of Guzman's re-arrest in 2016. - Constitutional deadline for New Criminal Justice System implementation passes. The New Criminal Justice System (NJSP) is in full effect nationwide, with the constitutional deadline for all 32 states to launch the system having passed on June 18, 2016. The justice system's overhaul from the traditional 'mixed inquisitorial' model of criminal procedure to an 'adversarial' model is significant step toward strengthening Mexico's democracy. However, many recognize that substantial further efforts will be needed to bolster the rule of law. - President Pena Nieto's approval rating hits new low amid concerns about corruption. Despite some important achievements, in 2016 President Peea Nieto (2012-2018) received the public's lowest approval rating not just for his first four years in office, but the lowest of all time for any president since Mexico began documenting approval ratings. In addition to accusations of corruption in his government and among fellow PRI politicians, Pena Nieto's unpopularity also reflects dissatisfaction with the country's recent economic and security problems, including the federal government's poor handling of the disappearance and murder of dozens of students from Ayotzinapa, Guerrero in 2014. - President Donald Trump prioritizes counter-narcotics efforts in Mexico. Drug trafficking from Mexico has become a more urgent concern in light of the mounting heroin epidemic in the United States, with the U.S. Center for Disease Control reporting that heroin-related deaths quadrupled to more than 8,200 people from 2002-2013. Initial diplomatic signals suggest that newly inaugurated U.S. President Donald Trump wants to push the Mexican government to reinvigorate its counter- narcotics efforts and also work to increase U.S. security measures along the 2,000 mile Southwest border. However, tensions between the two countries could undermine the close law enforcement and security cooperation achieved under the administrations of presidents George W. Bush (2000-2008) and Barack Obama (2008-2016).

Details: San Diego: Justice in Mexico, Department of Political Science & International Relations, University of San Diego, 2017. 60p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 21, 2017 at: https://justiceinmexico.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/2017_DrugViolenceinMexico.pdf

Year: 2017

Country: Mexico

URL: https://justiceinmexico.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/2017_DrugViolenceinMexico.pdf

Shelf Number: 145064

Keywords:
Drug Trafficking
Drug-Related Violence (Mexico)
Drugs and Crime
Homicides
Organized Crime
Violent Crime

Author: Loi, Valerio

Title: Tendencies in World Imprisonment for Drug Related Crime

Summary: The latest estimates on the world prison population indicate that 10.35 million people are incarcerated worldwide, according to calculations presented in February 2016. The assertion this figure can be correlated to the effects and outcomes of the global drug prohibition regime is the starting point of this chapter, which will try to give an overview of to what extent the use of criminal law has contributed to this figure on a global scale. Drug control policies with a strong emphasis on criminal law became a global reality particularly after the adoption of the 1988 UN Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychoactive Substances, which requires countries to suppress the illicit production, supply and consumption of drugs through criminal law. As an indirect result, it can be one of the main causes of imprisonments worldwide, as many countries have adopted legislation with prison sentences for all drugs related offences after signing this treaty. This emphasis on criminal law to deal with the drugs market has provoked thirty three countries to prescribe the death penalty for drug offences. And last but certainly not least, hundreds of thousands of people are locked up without any trial for lengthy periods of time in the name of drug treatment. The 2014 UNODC "World crime trends and emerging issues and responses in the field of crime prevention and criminal justice", of April 2014, shows the global trend on drug offences remains on the increase: drug trafficking grew by 11%, while offences related to drug possession increased over 18%, in the period 2003-2012. It is of high relevance to stress that most legislations do not distinguish between possessions of and traffic in drugs, possibly altering these figures even more towards the latter. Although exact figures lack, the 2014 World Drug Report indicates that, "worldwide, the large majority of drug use offences are associated with cannabis"; an indication that a large share of penal prosecutions globally is geared towards the cannabis market. Meanwhile, policy debates in different parts of the world reflect certain recognition of both the ineffectiveness of the current penal focus, especially for non-violent offences, such as possession for personal use and use, but sometimes including small scale traffic; and the degree of injustice being done to certain vulnerable population groups, such as single mothers, and people imprisoned abroad. This has lead in some countries to legislative reform and changing practice in the criminal justice system. Questioning the exclusive penal model is no longer taboo, and the need to restore the balance between punishment and care is long overdue. The following chapter will basically focus on the impact of the present drug laws enforcement in the world's prison systems. It won't be a mere recount of the share of detainees for drug crimes within the overall inmates' population, as far as data for that is available, according to geographical macro-regions. While assessing the main trends, we want to highlight the challenges and possible reform proposals of the present prison systems.

Details: El Colectivo de Estudios Drogas y Derecho (CEDD), 2016. 33p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 2, 2017 at: http://www.drogasyderecho.org/pses/restoi.pdf

Year: 2016

Country: International

URL: http://www.drogasyderecho.org/pses/restoi.pdf

Shelf Number: 145234

Keywords:
Drug Control
Drug Enforcement
Drug Offenders
Drug Trafficking
Drugs and Crime
Imprisonment
Prison Population
Prisoners

Author: Disney, Lynn

Title: Illicit Drug Use and Criminal Behavior: A Literature Review

Summary: Speculation and case histories about the role of illegal drug use and crime abounds. Turf wars between rival gangs, desperate users seeking resources to supply their habits, injuries resulting from a person high on PCP-are all examples of crimes that occurred as a result of illegal drug use. Look at almost any newspaper and you will find articles discussing these crimes in detail. These accounts rarely apply an empirical framework, and in reality, estimating the proportion of crime attributable to illegal drug use is an area of research where little agreement exists. The purpose of this literature review is to examine evidence-based approaches that have been tested in research and then determine whether defensible methodologies exist for calculating a drug use-attributable fraction for crimes committed in the United States. ANALYTICAL CONSIDERATIONS The precise nature and relationship of these factors is complex. Drugs can produce a variety of symptoms and side effects, depending on the individual. Do mental health problems precede or are they caused by the drug use? Does the criminal behavior occur because the individual is taking drugs or is it a cause of substance use? The answers to these questions differ based on who is taking the drug, the drug being taken, and the environment in which it is taken. A person with schizophrenia may abuse drugs to quell the symptoms of the disease. A woman may abuse drugs to alleviate feelings of inadequacy caused by spousal abuse. A teenager may engage in risky sexual behaviors due to lowered inhibitions caused by using drugs. A heroin addict may commit a burglary to obtain the funds to support his habit. In some cases, the crime would not occur but for the drug use. This paper attempts to tease out the causal relationship between illicit drug use and other forms of criminal behavior. Complicating any examination of the link between illicit drug use and criminal behavior is the tendency to include tobacco use and alcohol in this equation. While these products all may involve some significant risk of criminal behavior, they are outside the scope of this report. To the extent possible, numbers attributed to the use and abuse of tobacco and alcohol will be removed from the analysis. The abuse of prescription drugs as a cause of criminal behavior was not excluded but few studies focused solely on this exposure.

Details: Washington, DC; Office of National Drug Control Policy, 2010. 84p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 4, 2018 at: https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/sites/default/files/ondcp/policy-and-research/illicit_drug_use_and_criminal_behavior_literature_review_2010.pdf

Year: 2010

Country: International

URL: https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/sites/default/files/ondcp/policy-and-research/illicit_drug_use_and_criminal_behavior_literature_review_2010.pdf

Shelf Number: 150048

Keywords:
Drug Abuse and Addiction
Drug-Related Violence
Drugs and Crime
Illicit Drugs

Author: Rope, Olivia

Title: Global Prison Trends 2018: a global view on the state of prisons

Summary: Every year, Global Prison Trends by Penal Reform International (in collaboration with the Thailand Institute of Justice) provides us with a global view on the state of prisons. And, every year, this report is, unfortunately, hardly a surprise - we read about the degrading conditions in which people are imprisoned, and about their growing number. Yet the level of crime in most societies is constantly decreasing. The question that remains unanswered, therefore, is why our societies focus their response to unlawful behaviours so often on prison? Where is the proportionality in sentencing when we punish nonviolent offences with lengthy prison sentences? Is this the only response we can offer? The chapter on drugs and imprisonment in this report highlights that a high number of prisons in the world are overcrowded due to the incarceration of people for drug-related offences, in particular non-violent offences involving use and possession for personal use. This directly reflects our contemporary addiction to punishment and showcases the disproportionality of punishment in relation to the offence. The use of harsh prison sentences for people who use drugs or for those who play a minor role in the drug trade also shows the inefficiency, limitations and perverse effects of current drug control policies. Not only are punishment and incarceration becoming the sole instruments used to enforce the law, but also they are serving to implement moral norms which have no link with the reality of the offence that they are supposed to punish. This trend of over-incarceration and punishment of people who use drugs is seen on every continent. The deep impact it has on prison systems and on people in prison and their communities has sparked the current global debate on drug policy reform. In recent years, more and more countries have been introducing amendments to their drug laws; for example, by decriminalising the use of drugs in Norway and Colombia, and by replacing prison terms with monetary fines in Ghana and Tunisia or with community service, as envisaged in Senegal. Other countries have gone even further. Ecuador gave an amnesty to drug couriers and released thousands of prisoners. Countries that have traditionally adopted harsh stances on drugs, such as Malaysia and Iran, are reviewing their death penalty policies for drug offences, and removing people from death row. These changes and reforms are being discussed and implemented in a global environment that remains highly stigmatising, where drugs are still considered 'evil' and prohibition approaches prevail. They are therefore born out of a real need - the need for societies to stop exposing their citizens to greater risks from arrests related to drug use than come from the act of using drugs

Details: London: Penal Reform International; Bangkok: Thailand Institute of Justice, 2018. 60p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 23, 2018 at: https://www.penalreform.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/PRI_Global-Prison-Trends-2018_EN_WEB.pdf

Year: 2018

Country: International

URL: https://www.penalreform.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/PRI_Global-Prison-Trends-2018_EN_WEB.pdf

Shelf Number: 150332

Keywords:
Drug Offenders
Drugs and Crime
Offender Reentry
Offender Rehabilitation
Prison
Prison Population
Prisoners

Author: European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA)

Title: Drug-related homicide in Europe: a first review of the data and literature

Summary: Drugs can act as facilitators for all types of violence, including drug-related homicide (DRH). Addressing this phenomenon is of importance not only given the severity of a homicide event and its high costs to society, but also because DRH has the potential to act as a valuable indicator of wider drug-related violent crime. Comparing DRH levels between countries can be a valuable tool for identifying trends and new threats. As part of its programme for developing and improving drug supply indicators, the EMCDDA has been expanding its monitoring to include measures of wider drug-related crime, including DRH. However, there appears to be a significant gap in the available European data on DRH. This Paper aims to identify relevant European data sources on DRH, to assess the role of drugs in national homicide data, and to assess these sources and data in terms of monitoring potential. A critical review was conducted of existing national and international homicide data sources. Data on DRH is systematically prepared in the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Slovakia, Sweden and the United Kingdom (England, Wales, and Scotland). Available data suggests both between- and within-country variability in relation to the role of drugs in homicide events. Based on these findings, four key obstacles can be identified in terms of the current ability to monitor DRH: missing data, fragmented data, comparability issues and data quality reservations. To overcome these obstacles there is a need to define and operationalise concepts, based on common definitions and integrate them into the EMCDDA monitoring system.

Details: Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2018. 53p.

Source: Internet Resource: EMCDDA Papers: Accessed May 30, 2018 at: http://www.emcdda.europa.eu/system/files/publications/8838/20182100_TDAU18001ENN_PDF.pdf

Year: 2018

Country: Europe

URL: http://www.emcdda.europa.eu/system/files/publications/8838/20182100_TDAU18001ENN_PDF.pdf

Shelf Number: 150377

Keywords:
Drug-Related Violence
Drugs and Crime
Homicides
Violent Crime

Author: Evans, William N.

Title: Guns and Violence: The Enduring Impact of Crack Cocaine Markets on Young Black Males

Summary: Crack cocaine markets were associated with substantial increases in violence in the U.S. during the 1980s and 1990s. Using cross-city variation in the emergence of these markets, we show that the resulting violence has important long-term implications for understanding current levels of murder rates by age, sex and race. We estimate that the murder rate of young black males doubled soon after crack's entrance into a city, and that these rates were still 70 percent higher 17 years after crack's arrival. We document the role of increased gun possession as a mechanism for this increase. Following previous work, we show that the fraction of suicides by firearms is a good proxy for gun availability and that this variable among young black males follows a similar trajectory to murder rates. Access to guns by young black males explains their elevated murder rates today compared to older cohorts. The long run effects of this increase in violence are large. We attribute nearly eight percent of the murders in 2000 to the long-run effects of the emergence of crack markets. Elevated murder rates for younger black males continue through to today and can explain approximately one tenth of the gap in life expectancy between black and white males.

Details: Cambridge, MA: National Bureau of Economic Research, 2018. 71p.

Source: Internet Resource: NBER Working Paper 24819: Accessed August 24, 2018 at: http://www.nber.org/papers/w24819.pdf

Year: 2018

Country: United States

URL: http://www.nber.org/papers/w24819.pdf

Shelf Number: 151261

Keywords:
Crack Cocaine
Drugs and Crime
Gun Violence
Gun-Related Violence
Homicides

Author: Dave, Dhaval M.

Title: Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs, Opioid Abuse, and Crime

Summary: The past two decades have witnessed a substantial increase in opioid use and abuse in the United States. In response to this opioid epidemic, prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs) have been implemented in virtually all states. These programs collect, monitor, and analyze prescription opioid data with the goal of preventing the abuse and diversion of controlled substances. A growing literature has found that voluntary PDMPs, which do not require doctors to access PDMPs before prescribing controlled substances, have had little effect on opioid use and misuse. However, PDMPs that do mandate access have been found to be effective in reducing opioid misuse and other related health outcomes. In this paper we study the broader impact of voluntary and mandatory-access PDMPs on crime, and in the process inform the causal link between prescription opioid abuse and crime. Using information on offenses known to law enforcement and arrests from the Uniform Crime Reports (UCR), combined with a difference-in-differences empirical strategy, we find that voluntary PDMPs did not significantly affect crime whereas mandatory-access PDMPs have reduced crime by approximately 3.5%. Reductions in crime are largely associated with violent crimes, particularly homicide and assault. Also, we find evidence that young adults experienced the largest decrease in crime, which is consistent with prior work that also finds relatively larger declines in prescription opioid abuse for this group. Overall, these results provide additional evidence that prescription drug monitoring programs are an effective social policy tool to mitigate the negative consequences of opioid misuse, and more broadly indicate that opioid policies can have important spillover effects into other non-health related domains such as crime.

Details: Cambridge, MA: National Bureau of Economic Research, 2018. 55p.

Source: Internet Resource: NBER Working Paper No, 24975: Accessed September 4, 2018 at: http://www.nber.org/papers/w24975.pdf

Year: 2018

Country: United States

URL: http://www.nber.org/papers/w24975.pdf

Shelf Number: 151342

Keywords:
Drugs and Crime
Opioids
Prescription Drug Abuse
Prescription Drugs

Author: Pereira, Juan Ignacio

Title: Do Large Scale Industrial Investments Reduce Crime Rates in U.S. Counties?

Summary: This paper examines whether economic opportunities in local areas has an impact on crime rates. The analysis in this paper will look at employment shocks at the county level. The research design in this paper is modeled after the Greenstone and Moretti paper, 'Bidding for Industrial Plants: Does Winning a 'Million Dollar Plant' Increase Welfare?", where counties that have won the bid for industrial plants are the treatment group and the runner up counties that lost the bid by a narrow margin are the comparison group. The main findings are that Total Drug Selling and Manufacturing decline in treatment versus comparison counties. In addition, this effect seems to be bolstered by a decrease in Drug Selling and Manufacturing of Opium, Cocaine and their derivates.

Details: Unpublished paper, 2017. 41p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 5, 2018 at: https://www.bcu.gub.uy/Comunicaciones/Jornadas%20de%20Economa/PEREIRA_JUAN_2017_4848.pdf

Year: 2017

Country: United States

URL: https://www.bcu.gub.uy/Comunicaciones/Jornadas%20de%20Economa/PEREIRA_JUAN_2017_4848.pdf

Shelf Number: 152843

Keywords:
Drugs and Crime
Economics and Crime
Employment and Crime
Socioeconomic Conditions and Crime

Author: Fast, Danya

Title: Senses of place among young people entrenched in a "local" drug scene : an urban ethnography

Summary: In the public imagination, street youth are frequently defined through their relationships with place. Whether because they are viewed as innocent victims or violent criminals, young people who are homeless, destitute and visibly addicted to drugs are often understood to be out-of-place in the public spaces of city centers. This thesis is based on ethnographic fieldwork with a group of street-entrenched youth in Greater Vancouver conducted from January 2008 to January 2013. It included the creation of photography by youth exploring their sense of place in the city over time. Merging phenomenological perspectives on place-making with a focus on the processes of political economy and power that make some place worlds more enduring than others, I demonstrate that sense of place among youth who occupy the margins of urban space is far more complicated than conventional understandings imply. My findings reveal that, among youth, the "local" drug scene was produced in tension with a broader social spatial landscape of power, political economy and possibility, in which various remembered and imagined places were also implicated. In the context of this wider landscape-in-motion, involvement in Vancouver's inner city drug scene could be articulated as both a sense of belonging and dislocation, "being in the center of something" and "getting lost in the city." The drug scene could be a frontier of economic opportunity, in which anyone could attempt to stake a claim through activities like street-based drug dealing. And, it could be the site of a strictly enforced moral logic of violence and organized crime. The overarching objective of this thesis is to characterize these complex understandings, experiences and affects, and how they intersected with the regimes of living youth enacted on the streets. I conclude by highlighting that in order to meaningfully address youth's initiation into and sustained involvement in "risky" forms of drug use and crime in settings like Vancouver, intervention at the level of policy is urgently needed in order to address social suffering across young people's lives, and the wider geographies they implicate

Details: Vancouver: University of British Columbia, 2013. 271p.

Source: Internet Resource: Dissertation: Accessed January 24, 2019 at: https://open.library.ubc.ca/cIRcle/collections/ubctheses/24/items/1.0074084

Year: 2013

Country: Canada

URL: https://open.library.ubc.ca/cIRcle/collections/ubctheses/24/items/1.0074084

Shelf Number: 154391

Keywords:
Drug Abuse and Addiction
Drug Dealing
Drugs and Crime
Gangs
Street Youth
Urban Areas
Youth Gangs

Author: Moore, Karenza

Title: Emerging Drug Trends in Lancashire: Focusing on young adults' alcohol and drug use. Phase Two Report

Summary: This report presents findings from Phase two of a two year rolling programme of research (October 2010 to October 2012) on Emerging Drug Trends (hereafter EDT) in Lancashire funded by Lancashire Drug and Alcohol Action Team (hereafter LDAAT) and undertaken by Dr Fiona Measham , Dr Karenza Moore and Dr Jeanette �stergaard at Lancaster University, and for Phase Two also Dr Claire Fitzpatrick5 and Bina Bhardwa. In Phase One, we conducted surveys in the night time economy (hereafter NTE) in four town and city centres in Lancashire (Measham et al, 2011a). The purpose of this first phase was to produce predominately quantitative (statistical) data on prevalence and patterns of drug use, both in terms of established legal and controlled drugs such as alcohol, cannabis, cocaine and ecstasy, and also in terms of assessing the extent of the emergence of novel psychoactive substances or so-called 'legal highs' in the north west of England (EMCDDA 2010; Measham et al 2010, Measham et al 2011b). In Phase Two we turn our attention to young adults' attitudes towards, and experiences of, alcohol and illicit drug use. In order to explore young adults' attitudes and experiences within the broader context of emerging drug trends we undertook nine separate focus groups with a total of 55 young adults aged between 16 and 27 years of age. In addition to discussing their attitudes and experiences of alcohol and illicit drugs, focus group participants were asked to complete a short survey consisting of similar questions to those asked of participants in the LDAAT EDT NTE surveys (Measham et al, 2011a). This enabled a comparison of our focus group participants' alcohol and drug use patterns with young adults surveyed in the Lancashire NTE in 2010. This report commences with an outline and justification for the Methods used in Phase Two. We then present the focus group participants' Socio-demographic, drinking and drug profile according to the aforementioned short surveys, followed by sections exploring key findings in more depth: Problems with drinking and illicit drug use; Substance misuse and crime; Pre-loading and excessive drinking; Attitudes towards legal and illegal drugs; Information on alcohol and drug use. Conclusions and Policy Recommendations are then drawn, with a focus on the implications of these findings for LDAAT as commissioners of this research.

Details: Lancaster, UK: Lancaster University, Drug and Alcohol Action Team, 2011. 69p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 13, 2019 at: https://pure.vive.dk/ws/files/386799/Emerging_drug_trends_in_Lancashire._Focusing_on_young_adults_alcohol_and_drug_use_phase_2.pdf

Year: 2011

Country: United Kingdom

URL: https://pure.vive.dk/ws/files/386799/Emerging_drug_trends_in_Lancashire._Focusing_on_young_adults_alcohol_and_drug_use_phase_2.pdf

Shelf Number: 154953

Keywords:
Alcohol Abuse
Drug Abuse
Drugs and Crime
Illicit Drugs
Night-Time Economy
Substance Abuse

Rutgers - School of Law, Newark

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