Fight Crime by Eliminating Addiction

In every state in the Union, crime and arrest statistics show the relationship between drug or alcohol abuse and crime. And Texas is no exception. An examination of ADAM (Arrestee Drug Abuse Monitoring Program) statistics shows that between 50 and 60 percent of adult male arrestees in four Texas cities tested positive for cocaine, marijuana, methamphetamine, opiates or PCP in 2000. The numbers ranged from a high of 59 percent in Laredo to a low of 52.9 percent in San Antonio. Marijuana was the top drug found in Dallas, and 45 percent of all arrestees in Laredo tested positive for cocaine.

The same year, the economic impact of drug or alcohol abuse in Texas was an estimated $25.9 billion. This means a cost of more than $1,200 for every man, woman and child in the state.

The Office of National Drug Control Policy states the connection this way: “Most directly, it is a crime to use, possess, manufacture or distribute drugs…drugs are also related to crime through the effects they have on the user’s behavior and by generating violence and other illegal activity in connection with drug trafficking.” Illicit drug users are about 16 times more likely than nonusers to be arrested for theft, 9 times more likely to be arrested for assault.

The loss of life to drugs or alcohol is another cost that it’s hard to put a price tag on. Thousands of Texans lose their lives each year to substance abuse. In 2002, 1,677 people in Harris County and 1,070 people in Dallas County died this way.

“Whether a person starts using drugs first or starts committing crimes first, the result is the same: a dwindling spiral of loss of self-respect and hope that leads to more drug use and more crime,” said Gary W. Smith, Executive Director of Narconon Arrowhead, one of the country’s leading drug and alcohol rehabilitation and education centers, located in Canadian, Oklahoma. “This self-destructive cycle can be interrupted with an effective drug or alcohol rehabilitation that first eliminates the cravings and then teaches a person the skills to live a life free from drugs or crime. Then a person who fell into drug use and crime has a chance to reclaim their self-respect and their position as a productive member of society.”

“Another important part of the solution is drug education to keep our young people from starting drug or criminal habits,” Smith added. “Narconon offers a full range of services from in-patient rehabilitation and drug education lectures to free consultations to those struggling with addiction and referrals to treatment programs across the U.S.”