Study: More whites, fewer blacks going to prison for drugs

[Liberal_in_LA]

Source: CNN

CNN) -- For the first time since the war on drugs became a national law enforcement obsession in the mid-1980s, the number of African-Americans in state prisons for drug offenses has declined, a criminal justice reform organization said.

The number of whites in state prison for drugs rose 42.6 percent since 1999, while blacks dropped 21.6 percent.

A study released Tuesday by the Sentencing Project found a 21.6 percent drop in the number of blacks incarcerated for drug offenses, a decline of 31,000 people, from 1999 to 2005.

The corresponding number of whites in state prisons for drug offenses rose 42.6 percent, or by more than 21,000 people, while the number of Hispanics was virtually unchanged, according to "The Changing Racial Dynamics of the War on Drugs."

The study, authored by Executive Director Marc Mauer, found that the differences between black and white imprisonments for drug crimes are partly because of how police target suspects and court sentencing guidelines, which vary by state.

Also, there has been a decrease in the use of crack cocaine in predominantly minority urban neighborhoods and an increase in methamphetamine abuse in many primarily white rural areas, Mauer said Wednesday.

Read more: http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/04/15/blacks.whites.prisons.drugs/index.html

[Psephos]

1. From the article: crack use on decline, meth on increase

Crack tends to be found more in "predominantly minority urban neighborhoods," while meth is "abused in many primarily white rural areas."

Less an issue of race than of demographics.

I've had two people close to me whose lives were utterly wrecked by crack. One finally put the pieces back together after years in the wilderness; the other did not.

[Liberal_in_LA]

2. yes, Ever watch that cable show 'Intervention"? It's a Meth Meth world these days

[harmonicon]

3. if this trend continues...

maybe we'll actually see some sensible drug laws; that is, once the same percentage of the white population is needlessly imprisoned as has been the black population for the last few decades.

[Yavin4]

4. A Terrific TV Show About the Meth World Is "Breaking Bad" on AMC

It's probably my favorite TV show. Well worth watching.

[knowbody0]

5. the last episode was traumatic for me

I love the show, but that creepy couple with the kid, that was hard to watch

[dysfunctional press]

6. i usually go to my buddy's house for drugs.

i don't need drugs bad enough to go to prison to get them.

[Tiggeroshii]

8. Yeah. Same here.

Don't really get it :shrug:

[Tiggeroshii]

7. Sounds like that's probably closer to the proportion that should be going to jail for drugs, too...

Good to see the system sort of correcting itself.

[SkyDaddy7]

9. LOL!

I can hear it now the Republicans will blame the Obama Administration for introducing METH into the trailer parks of America.

[w8liftinglady]

10. meth is endemic here.(Rural Texas)

you can spot a meth user from a mile away.I see so many in my hospital,usually for cellulitis.It adds 30 years to a person's face.

[Name removed]

11. Deleted message

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[pattmarty]

12. It's only because just about all the black people are in prison already.

:sarcasm:

[Blue_Tires]

13. how long before RW radio starts shouting that Obama let all the blacks out of prison?

[TEmperorHasNoClothes]

14. OMG-- I can hear it now---Rush and Glenn are probably on the story

[DS1]

15. OBAMA WHITE SLAVERY!

Coming to a radio near you!

[DavidDvorkin]

16. It's hard to see that as an improvement

As long as anyone is going to prison for using drugs, the system is mad.