A third of state prisoners and about 1 in 5 federal inmates said they committed their offenses while under the influence of drugs. Many of them turned to crime for money to support expensive drug habits. Three-quarters of chronic cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine users are arrested in the course of any given year, and only a quarter of these people received drug treatment in the past. Most return to drugs as soon as they complete their prison terms. In turn, drug abusers constitute half the people on probation and parole in America.
Studies prove that when people are forced into therapy, results are positive.
Unfortunately, only a small proportion of inmates requesting drug treatment currently are helped. Without effective intervention, we are merely postponing the time when prisoners return to drugs and crime. Research indicates that therapy lasting longer than 90 days is much more likely to reduce drug use and crime. Follow-up is also important. These findings need to be given careful attention at a time when probation and other intermediate measures are being eliminated.