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. 2020 Jan;110(S1):S85-S92.
doi: 10.2105/AJPH.2019.305409.

Racial/Ethnic Differences in Drug- and Alcohol-Related Arrest Outcomes in a Southwest County From 2009 to 2018

Ricky Camplain  1 , Carolyn Camplain  1 , Robert T Trotter 2nd  1 , George Pro  1 , Samantha Sabo  1 , Emery Eaves  1 , Marie Peoples  1 , Julie A Baldwin  1
Affiliations

Racial/Ethnic Differences in Drug- and Alcohol-Related Arrest Outcomes in a Southwest County From 2009 to 2018

Ricky Camplain et al. Am J Public Health. 2020 Jan.

Abstract

Objectives. To estimate the association between race/ethnicity and drug- and alcohol-related arrest outcomes.Methods. We used multinomial logistic regression and general estimating equations to estimate the association between race/ethnicity and arrest outcomes in 36 073 drug- and alcohol-related arrests obtained from administrative records in a Southwest US county from 2009 to 2018. Results were stratified by charge type.Results. Among misdemeanor drug- and alcohol-related arrests, American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN; adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 3.60; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 3.32, 3.90), Latino (AOR = 1.53; 95% CI = 1.35, 1.73), and Black persons (AOR = 1.28; 95% CI = 1.05, 1.55) were more likely than White persons to be booked into jail as opposed to cited and released. AI/AN (AOR = 10.77; 95% CI = 9.40, 12.35), Latino (AOR = 2.63; 95% CI = 2.12, 3.28), and Black persons (AOR = 1.84; 95% CI = 1.19, 2.84) also were more likely than White persons to be convicted and serve time for their misdemeanor charges. Results were similar for felony drug- and alcohol-related arrests aggregated and stratified.Conclusions. Our results suggest that race/ethnicity is associated with outcomes in drug-related arrests and that overrepresentation of racial/ethnic minorities in the criminal justice system cannot be attributed to greater use of drugs and alcohol in general.

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