More Arrestees Are Using Meth Area Shows High Use Of The Drug, Study Says

Wed., July 26, 2000

By Mike Roarke mikero@spokesman.com

Men booked into the Spokane County Jail last year tested positive for drug use 62 percent of the time, a new federal study reports.

Although total drug use among arrestees registered little change from 1998, methamphetamine abuse for both men and women increased noticeably, according to the study released last week.

Men tested positive for meth in 20.1 percent of the jail bookings last year, up from 15.8 percent in 1998. Women tested positive for meth at a rate of 26.6 percent - up 4.6 percent.

“Spokane is one of the higher sites in the country for methamphetamine use,” said Dr. Joseph Kabel, who collected the data for the National Institute of Justice study.

Only marijuana is more likely to be detected in men being booked into jail - appearing in 43.5 percent of arrestees.

A total of 745 men were tested in the Spokane study. Spokane is one of 34 cities where arrestees are asked to provide urine tests and other information about their drug habits.

Additionally, 173 women were surveyed at the county jail. More than 70percent were found to have drugs in their system last year.

The study notes meth use is most prevalent in the Western United States. Other cities where more than 20 percent of both men and women arrestees tested positive for meth include Portland, Sacramento, Salt Lake City, San Diego and San Jose.

Meth is a white crystal powder that is inexpensive and made from household goods. Users snort, inject or swallow the drug, which produces a lasting high.

In the first six months of 1999, Spokane police made 216 felony arrests for meth possession - more than crack, cocaine, marijuana and heroin combined.

The study reinforces the idea that there is a tie between drug use and other criminal behavior.

For instance, about 66 percent of the men booked into jail for a property crime last year tested positive for drugs. Similarly, women who were detained for property crimes tested positive for drugs in 79.5 percent of the cases.

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