Introduction

Purpose of ADAM 

The Arrestee Drug Abuse Program (ADAM) was designed to provide information on drug use and related activities among arrestees throughout the country.  The program relies upon ADAM staff interviewing recently booked arrestees with a focus on drug use and associated behavior.  In addition, we collect urine samples that are used to determine the types of drugs used by arrestees.  There are currently 39 ADAM sites in the U.S., of which Maricopa County and Pima County represent Arizona.  In 2000, ADAM finalized a new sampling design and collection instrument that provided a more accurate representation of arrestee drug use and data on treatment needs and drug markets.   Data collected since the first quarter of 2000 provide a much richer account of arrestees’ experiences with drugs and other aspects of their life related to drug use.  

Data Collection

Sampling Plan and Catchment Areas

In order to increase the utility and the generalizability of ADAM data, data collection in all 39 sites must adhere to specific guidelines.  One primary goal of ADAM is to estimate the prevalence of drug use among the entire arrestee population in a county.  To meet this objective ADAM has developed a systematic sampling plan that all sites must follow.  This plan requires that all booking facilities be included in the sampling frame and all arrestees (both selected and not selected) have a known probability for selection. 

While data is collected quarterly in both Maricopa and Pima Counties, the sampling plan has led to very different methodological approaches being used in each county.   In Pima County, nearly all arrestees are booked at the Pima County Jail.  Thus, ADAM data collection takes place only in that facility.  The situation in Maricopa County is more complex as arrestees can be booked at any of 32 different facilities including many municipal police departments.  Thus, the probability based sampling plan calls for collecting data at multiple sites with target quotas at each facility within Maricopa County.  Currently, within Maricopa County data collection takes place at Madison Street Jail, Mesa Police Department, and Glendale Police Department. 

Within each facility the process of selecting arrestees for interviewing is guided by a common, systematic procedure.  Based on the sampling plan, each facility must collect a predetermined number of completed interviews and urine samples (see Table 1).  While ADAM interviewers are only in each facility for 8 hours each day, arrestees are systematically selected based upon booking time from throughout the 24 hours in each day.  In addition, ADAM incorporates a weighting system that further assures that the sample represents the arrestee population.  This post-sampling stratification weighting design accounts for factors that affect the probability of selection and includes day of week of the arrest, time of day of the arrest, reason for the arrest, and where the arrestee was booked.  At present, data are only weighted for males as a female sampling plan is still in development.

 Table 1: Quarterly and Annual Target Sample Size for each Facility

It’s important to recognize that without sampling, it is impossible for ADAM to make comparisons across sites and across time periods with ADAM data.  The sampling plan represents the latest improvement in the attempt to measure drug use among arrestee populations in our communities.  

Instrument

ADAM interviewers at all sites use a standardized data collection instrument.  The survey consists of six parts.  First, a series of questions are asked about the arrestees’ demographic characteristics, including their immigrant status, employment status, and health insurance coverage.  Second, detailed information is gathered about drug and mental health treatment, contact with the criminal justice system, and alcohol and drug use throughout the previous year.  Third, a battery of questions are asked that assess the arrestees’ risk for both drug and alcohol dependency and abuse.  Fourth, arrestees are asked several questions about drugs obtained in the previous month and specifics of any transactions, including amount of drug obtained, price, type of location, and frequency of transactions.  Fifth, questions about drug and alcohol use in the past month, with specific attention to the previous 3 days, are included.  The last step of the interview is collection of a urine specimen.

Local Coordinating Councils

Local Coordinating Councils (LCCs) are an important component of the ADAM program.  The goal of the LCC is to promote a forum for feedback from the community and to incorporate community interests in future activities associated with the ADAM program.  The Council includes representatives from areas such as law enforcement, treatment providers, the courts, community corrections, public health, and prevention programs.  LCC's may assist in special analyses of ADAM data, data dissemination, and the identification of potential outreach populations. 

Purpose of Arizona ADAM Report

The purpose of this report is to provide local, state, and federal agencies in the state of Arizona with the latest available data in a comprehensive manner.  We present data from the beginning of 2000 through the third quarter of 2001 for both Pima and Maricopa Counties.  While data have been collected from adults and juveniles, this report focuses on the adult arrestee population and relies exclusively on arrestees who completed the interview and provided a useable urine sample.  Results are reported in the four sections described below.

  The second section will present general demographic information on the arrestee population in both counties.  The purpose of this section is to provide agencies with a description of arrestees along a number of dimensions.  For example, tables summarize age, race/ethnicity, education, employment, and type of living arrangement for male and female arrestees.  Overall county-wide urinalysis results are presented for arrestees booked for different types of offenses.  The last table in this section provides estimates of drug use by arresting agency (the agency that booked the interviewee into the facility).

  The third section of the report will summarize data that is directly relevant to Arizona’s Drug Medicalization, Prevention, and Control Act of 1996 (Proposition 200).  This law mandates drug treatment for defendants who are convicted of either a first or second time drug offense.  Given that Arizona is one of two states with mandatory drug treatment, current information on arrestee drug use is important for policy-makers.  Specifically, the section will present information on how drug use varies by mandatory drug treatment criteria (e.g., drug related offenses versus non-drug related offenses) and by gender.  We also include information on risk for dependency and abuse by type of drugs used and Proposition 200 eligibility for males and females.  Finally, information on the risk for dependency for arrestees who have undergone treatment in the past is reported.

  The fourth section of the report provides information on characteristics of drug markets in Maricopa and Pima counties.  We present information on how arrestees obtain different drugs, whether they pay cash or obtain them in some other manner.  Additional information is presented on failed transactions.  We describe how the number of failed transaction, and the reason for failure, have changed over time in both counties.

  The fifth section of the report highlights the spatial distribution of drug use and drug markets.  In particular, we present data pertaining to the proportion of arrestees testing positive for four drug types (i.e., marijuana, cocaine, opiates, methamphetamine) by residential zip code.  We also present the proportion of respondents who obtained any of the five drugs (i.e., marijuana, powder or crack cocaine, opiates, and methamphetamine) listed in their own neighborhood by residential zip code. 

  An issue of relevance to police agencies is the identification of drugs used by offenders in each jurisdiction.  In order to provide data for specific law enforcement agencies, we include an Appendix that separates and reports on sampled arrestees by the agency that booked them into the facility.

 Copyright Arizona Board of Regents                                             Contact: CHS Webmaster