NCJ Number
153717
Date Published
1995
Length
38 pages
Annotation
Since 1988, 29 Anti-Drug Law Enforcement Task Forces, funded under the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986, have been key players in the "war on drugs" in Wisconsin.
Abstract
The 1986 Act encourages a multijurisdictional, collaborative approach to drug law enforcement. Task forces are required to report the results of their work to Wisconsin's Office of Justice Assistance (OJA) on a quarterly basis. Arrest and incident data reported to OJA from 1989 to 1993 indicate that the task forces significantly increased the rate of drug law enforcement. During the period, total task force arrests increased by 149.3 percent. About half of all arrests were for drug sales, and the other half were for drug possession. In 1989, task forces made 30 percent of all drug sales arrests and 10 percent of all drug possession arrests reported to the Uniform Crime Report (UCR) program. By 1993, task forces made 58 percent of all drug sales arrests and 21 percent of all drug possession arrests reported to the UCR program. Juvenile arrests increased by 325 percent between 1989 and 1993, while adult arrests increased by 142.5 percent. Juvenile drug sales arrests rose by 509.5 percent, adult drug sales arrests rose by 120.3 percent, juvenile drug possession arrests increased by 225.6 percent, and adult drug possession arrests increased by 173.2 percent. Most drug arrests were made for cocaine and marijuana. Arrests for cocaine and cocaine base rose by 70.7 percent, and arrests involving marijuana increased by 206.1 percent. The nature of the drug problem in Wisconsin is addressed, along with geographic and demographic considerations in drug law enforcement in both rural and urban areas. The law enforcement response to the drug problem is discussed, and detailed data are provided on task force arrest activity between 1989 and 1993. Data on Wisconsin's Cannabis Enforcement and Suppression Effort (CEASE) are appended. 12 tables, 5 charts, 2 graphs, and 2 maps