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Do the Drugs, Do the Time? The Effect of Drug Abuse on Sentences Imposed on Drug Offenders in Three U.S. District Courts

NCJ Number
243245
Journal
Criminal Justice and Behavior Volume: 40 Issue: 6 Dated: June 2013 Pages: 646-670
Author(s)
Cassia Spohn; Steven Belenko
Date Published
June 2013
Length
25 pages
Annotation
This study determined whether offenders' history of hard drug use and hard drug use at the time of the crime affect case outcomes for offenders in three Federal district courts.
Abstract
The purpose of this study is to determine whether offenders' history of hard drug use and hard drug use at the time of the crime affect case outcomes for offenders in three Federal district courts. The authors focus on three outcomeswhether the offender was in pretrial detention prior to adjudication, whether the offender received a downward departure for providing substantial assistance, and the length of the sentence imposed on offenders who were sentenced to prisonand the authors hypothesize that the offender's history of drug use and drug use at the time of the crime will have varying effects on the three outcomes. The results reveal that use of illegal drugs had multifaceted, but not illogical, effects. Abstract published by arrangement with Sage Journals.