Examining the Substance Use Patterns and Treatment Needs of Incarcerated Sex Offenders

Using data from a Bureau of Justice Statistics' national prison inmate survey, this paper analyzes alcohol and drug use and abuse patterns among men incarcerated in state prison for sex crimes. Of the 13,986 inmates in the sample, 11.5% were incarcerated for a sex offense. Two thirds were substance-involved, meaning that they were under the influence of alcohol or drugs at the time of their crime, had committed a crime to get money for drugs, had histories of regular illegal drug use, had received treatment for alcoholism, or shared some combination of these characteristics. The level and type of substance-involvement was related to age and race, to history of victimization, and to victim characteristics. We discuss the implications of these findings for correctional program interventions, including assessing drug and alcohol problems, availability of substance abuse treatment for sex offenders, and the conjunction of such treatment with other programs.