The statistical association between drug misuse and crime: A meta-analysis

Bennett, Trevor; Holloway, Katy; Farrington, David P.

doi:10.1016/j.avb.2008.02.001

Cited by 438 publications

(369 citation statements)

References 26 publications

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“…While some authors (12)(13)(14)(15)(16) advance the notion that serious mental illness (psychosis and mood disorders) may explain violent behavior, others fail to establish a causal relation between suffering a mental disorder and manifesting violent behavior (17). In the literature there is greater consensus regarding the relationship between violent behavior and the use of drugs in association with a mental disorder (7,13,15,18,19). With 973 serious mental illnesses such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, the use of drugs increases the likelihood of violence (20).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Violent Offences, Mental Disorder and Substance-use Disorders

Vicens¹,

Dueñas²,

Tort³

2016

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Introduction: The relationship between violent offences, mental disorder and substance-use disorders has been widely analyzed but has produced contradictory results. Studies examining this relationship in prison populations are scarce. Objectives: The aim of the study was to analyze the relationship between violent crime, substance-use disorders and mental disorder. Method: This is a descriptive, cross-sectional, epidemiological study of 707 male prisoners. Socio-demographic, clinical and penal data were collected by trained interviewers. Penal data were confirmed using penitentiary records. The clinical version of the Structured Clinical Interview (SCID 1) for DSM-IV Axis I Disorders was used for diagnosis of Axis I mental disorders (including substance-use disorders). Inmates who have lifetime substance-use disorders were classified by type and number of substances used. We considered violent offences: homicide and attempted homicide, aggravated assault, common assault, robbery, threatening behavior, harassment, arson and any sexual offence. Results: Violent offences in inmates who used drugs (n=370) were more prevalent than in inmates who did not (84.6% vs.15,3%, p<0.0001).The risk of committing a violent crime is double for people using a substance compared to those who do not and those who are not repeat offenders (OR= 2.03 CI 95%: 1.08-3.78). This risk increases when considering repeat offenders and those who use more than one substance . The presence of a mental disorder turns out not to be significant (OR= 1.38 CI 95%: 0.98-1.95). Conclusions: In our study, the greatest risk factors for committing a violent offence were being a re-offender and using more than one substance. Mental disorder was not found to be a risk factor for violent offences.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Violent Offences, Mental Disorder and Substance-use Disorders

Vicens¹,

Dueñas²,

Tort³

2016

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“…Such offenders typically have long criminal and drug-use histories, often extending from adolescence; have weak ties to formal and informal pro-social influences; have attitudes and associates conducive to ongoing criminal behavior; and may exhibit extensive rates of personality disorders, including psychopathy [16][17][18]. Although the relationship between drug use and crime is complex [19][20][21][22][23], for many offenders these are mutually reinforcing behaviors that perpetuate, and are perpetuated by, antisocial lifestyles.…”

Section: Extensive Criminal Historiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cost Variation among Subpopulations of Diverted Drug Offenders under California’s Proposition 36

Anglin¹

2014

J Alcohol Drug Depend

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Objectives: To explore differences in government costs among several subpopulations of offenders who were eligible to participate in California's Proposition 36, enacted as the Substance Abuse and Crime Prevention Act of 2000 (SACPA). Methods:The study compared a time-lagged cohort of offenders meeting SACPA eligibility criteria before SACPA was enacted (N=42,706) to the first-year SACPA cohort (N=37,991). Difference-in-differences (DID), multilevel, multivariate, random-effects regression models that included membership in the subpopulation categories (criminal, mental health, employment) and interaction terms were estimated separately for men and women to determine the effect of SACPA on total costs and across eight cost domains (prison, jail, probation, parole, health, arrests, convictions, and treatment).Results: A substantial proportion of SACPA participants had significant chronic problems. SACPA-eligible male offenders with extensive criminal histories yielded greater DID savings than low-history offenders, an effect augmented by SACPA participation. Among female offenders with extensive criminal histories, overall savings were negated by increased arrest/conviction costs. A documented history of mental illness resulted in increased costs for men and women.Conclusions and implications for practice: SACPA participation was cost-effective among more severe cases, especially for male offenders with extensive criminal histories; however, the program did not attenuate increased costs for offenders with severe mental illness. Services for the special needs of such offender populations need further development and implementation.

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“…The latest example of this is the emergence of parts of West Africa as transit hubs for cocaine trafficking between Latin America and Europe, a development which has been profoundly damaging for the region (UNODC 2007;Carrier and Klantschnig 2012). In richer, developed countries, the drug trade carries a different but equally troubling set of problems, notably the impact on crime (Bennett et al 2008) and inequalities (Stevens 2011:13-32). This is a dismal picture.…”

Section: Global Illicit Drug Problems: the Legal And Policy Challengementioning

confidence: 99%