1 - National Criminal Justice Reference Service

:1
Opiate Use
• Combining the quarterly data into
annual figures shows little variation
over four years with respect
to opiate use by arrestees. Men
and women showed similar
usage levels, varying from 17%
to 22% over four years.
Figure 3
DUF ADULT OPIATE USE
San Diego County, 1988·1991
30~--------------------____________ ~
11
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J l
!I 6
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• Opiate use is of particular concern
since its typical route of
administration is injection. Use
of needles places individuals at
risk for HIV infection due to
needle sharing. Reports from the
State Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement
suggest that heroin
continues to be plentiful. Black
tar heroin is the most dominant
form of heroin seized in
California.
Cocaine Use
• Cocaine has been the most
prevalent drug used by women
arrestees, based on the DUF
data. The last two years (1990-
91) suggest the same is true for
men in the DUF program. With
the exception of 1988, when
50% of the women were cocaine
positive, neither men nor women
have varied significantly. In all
four years presented, over 40%
of the men showed recent use of
cocaine. For 1991, 41 % of the
women were cocaine positive.
Self-report data suggest that
most cocaine users in San Diego
inhale or snort ~ocaine. This is
in contrast to several DUF sites
in which smoking crack is the
preferred method of v.sing
cocaine. Law enforcement
reports suggest that cocaine
remains widely available with
little change in price or purity
levels.
0
60
SO
10
1&88 1989 1990 1991
OMen • Wom'3n
SOURCE: San I*go ~ 01 o--etIII
Figure 4
DUF ADULT COCAINE USE
San Diego County, 1988-1991
!O%
0-4---...... -
1988 1989 1990 1991
OMen • Women
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