Recent Substance Use by People in Prison at the Time of Their Offenses

"Nearly two-thirds (64%) of state and federal prisoners reported using at least one drug in the 30 days prior to arrest for the offense for which they were serving time. Among state and federal prisoners who were not incarcerated for the entire 12 months prior to admission to prison for the offense for which they were serving a sentence (916,900), nearly half (47%) met the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) criteria for substance use disorder in the 12 months prior to admission to prison."

Source

Laura M. Maruschak, Jennifer Bronson, PhD, and Mariel Alper, PhD. Alcohol and Drug Use and Treatment Reported by Prisoners: Survey of Prison Inmates, 2016. US Dept. of Justice Bureau of Justice Statistics. NCJ Number 252641. July 2021.