Criminolgy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Criminolgy - Essay Example Drugs alter a person’s behavior. Depending on the user it may cause violence. Sometimes this violence leads to illegal activity. A drug user’s only objective at times is to get money for drugs by any means necessary. Some of the drug related crimes are larceny, armed burglary, assault, motor vehicle theft, robbery, possession or sale of drugs and drunken law violations. Gangs are majorly affiliated with drugs. The National Institute of Justice (NIJ) Arrestee Drug Abuse monitoring program measures drug use among arrestees with positive urine tests for drug use (Office of National Drug Control Policy, 2009). Data is collected voluntarily and anonymously at the time of arrest in jails. Data from males arrested showed that 42.5 to 78.7 percent tested positive for drugs (Office of National Drug Control Policy, 2009). Female who tested positive for drugs ranged from 33.3 to 82.1 percent (Office of National Drug Control Policy, 2009). Males arrested charged with drug possession or sales were among the most likely to test positive for drug use, while female arrestees charged with prostitution, drug possession or sales were among the most likely to show a positive test result In 1997 the U.S. bureau of the census conducted surveys of state and federal prisons. About 22.4 to 32.6 percent of inmates arrested reported being under the influence of drugs at the time of their offense, 20 to 27 percent stated that they committed their crime to obtain money to buy drugs (Gargaro, 1999). The increase in the lethal weapons on the street has also contributed to drug violence. Out of 14,088 homicides in 1998 4.8 percent were drug related accorded to FBI crime stats (Gargaro, 1999). Guns, knives, and other weapons are used in armed robberies, enforcing drug deals, and for respect on the streets. Weapons and drugs are two entities that are found together. Liberals and