U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government, Department of Justice.

Drug policy

Why Is the United States the Most Homicidal Nation in the Affluent World?

December 2013

Ohio State University Since World War II, the homicide rate in the U.S. has been three to ten times higher than in Canada, Western Europe, and Japan. This, however, has not always been the case. What caused the dramatic change? Dr. Roth discussed how and why rates of different kinds of homicide have varied across time and space over the past 450 years, including an examination of the murder of children by parents or caregivers, intimate partner violence, and homicides among unrelated adults.

Changing the Behavior of Drug-Involved Offenders: Supervision That Works

December 2012

A small number of those who commit crimes are heavily involved in drugs commit a large portion of the crime in this country. An evaluation of a "smart supervision" effort in Hawaii that uses swift and certain sanctioning showed that individuals committing crimes who are heavily involved in drug use can indeed change their behavior when the supervision is properly implemented.

2019 National Opioid and Emerging Drug Threats Policy and Practice Forum

Dr. Muhlhausen's remarks at the 2019 National Opioid and Emerging Drug Threats Policy and Practice Forum, which built off the momentum of the widespread stakeholder meetings convened to discuss the consequences of this national epidemic, including the impact it has had on public safety, public health, and the criminal justice response.

Good morning!

Thank you all for coming here so early, and in many...

Alternative Sentencing Policies for Drug Offenders

June 2009

The panel presentations from the 2009 NIJ Conference are based on an NIJ-sponsored evaluation of the effectiveness of Kansas Senate Bill 123, which mandates community-based drug abuse treatment for drug possession by nonviolent offenders in lieu of prison. 

Sex Offenders in the Community: Post-Release, Registration, Notification and Residency Restrictions

May 2010

The management of sexual offenders in the community post-release is an issue of increasing concern to law enforcement, policymakers and the public. In recent years, efforts to strengthen registration and notification have been enhanced. At the same time, comparatively little attention has been paid to related matters, such as how residency restrictions may impact offenders' efforts to find stable work and living arrangements once they are released from prison, whether rates of recidivism have changed, and whether these policies increase the safety of potential victims.

Crime File: Legalization of Drugs

January 1990

1990

This Crime File video presents overview of the nature and effects of some drug legalization in Holland; followed by an examination of arguments for and against drug legalization as presented by panelists Ethan Nadelmann, assistant professor at Princeton University, and Herbert Kleber, deputy director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy.