NCJ Number
159472
Date Published
1994
Length
15 pages
Annotation
This is an attempt to inform readers about the prevalence and patterns of cocaine and crack use in Britain.
Abstract
Information about the prevalence and patterns of cocaine and crack use in Britain is patchy and incomplete. Hard information on the subject includes: (1) seizure statistics provided by Customs and Excise and the police; (2) the numbers of notified cocaine addicts; and (3) numbers of persons found guilty, cautioned, or dealt with for cocaine offenses. There is even less information available on the patterns of use and what is available is almost entirely anecdotal. However, the author provides a few isolated comments. (1) It appears that cocaine is rarely used with any regularity by those under 20 years of age. (2) Among regular users, it is often used in conjunction with other drugs, especially heroin. (3) Cocaine may be used to energize a user after a bout of heroin or tranquilizer use, or those drugs may be used as sedatives to offset the effects of cocaine. (4) There is no hard evidence that crack is consistently attracting a different or younger market than cocaine powder. Statistical evidence indicates that cocaine use in Britain is on the increase. The demand for stimulant drugs is served primarily by home-produced cheap amphetamine sulphate and ecstasy. Figures, note, references