Maryland Drug Threat Assessment

List of Tables

Table 1. Drug-Related Treatment Admissions to Publicly Funded Facilities, Maryland, 1994-1999

List of Figures

Figure 1. Maryland Counties

Executive Summary

The distribution and abuse of illegal drugs constitute a significant threat to Maryland. Heroin, most frequently abused in Baltimore, is readily available throughout the state and poses the primary drug threat. Heroin accounted for more deaths, treatment admissions, and emergency department mentions in 1999 than any other illegal drug in Maryland. Heroin also is a major factor in murders and homicides as distributors compete for market share. Cocaine, particularly crack cocaine, is readily available in Maryland and is a serious threat. Almost three-quarters of all drug-related federal sentences in Maryland in 2000 were for powdered or crack cocaine-related offenses. Marijuana is the most widely available and commonly abused drug in Maryland. The availability of other dangerous drugs such as MDMA, ketamine, LSD, GHB, and diverted pharmaceuticals is increasing and constitutes a growing threat. Increased abuse of illicit substances by adolescents and young adults is a serious cause for concern among law enforcement authorities, treatment providers, educators, and others. Methamphetamine currently poses a limited threat to the state.

Heroin is the most serious illicit drug threat to Maryland. Rates of abuse are high, particularly in Baltimore, as evidenced by the significant number of treatment admissions, emergency department mentions, and deaths in which heroin was a factor. Heroin is readily available in urban parts of the state and is becoming increasingly available in suburban and rural areas. The availability of high purity heroin that can effectively be snorted or smoked, primarily from South America, is a particular concern to the state's law enforcement professionals and healthcare providers. While heroin abuse typically is not associated with violent crime, violence related to the distribution of heroin is a serious problem in Baltimore. Maryland-based local independent dealers and Dominican and Colombian criminal groups based in New York City and Philadelphia are the dominant transporters of heroin into Maryland. Dominican and Colombian criminal groups based in New York City, Philadelphia, and Baltimore and Maryland-based local independent dealers dominate the wholesale distribution of heroin in Maryland. Local independent dealers and loosely organized gangs dominate retail heroin distribution throughout the state. In Baltimore, loosely organized neighborhood gangs consisting primarily of African American members conduct most of the retail heroin distribution.

The distribution and abuse of cocaine--both powdered and crack--pose a significant threat to Maryland. Cocaine is frequently abused and readily available in the state, particularly in the Baltimore area. Crack cocaine is the drug most commonly associated with violent crime in Maryland. Dominican and Colombian criminal groups based in New York City and Philadelphia and Maryland-based local independent dealers are the primary transporters of powdered cocaine into and through Maryland. These Dominican and, to a lesser extent, Colombian criminal groups supply wholesale and retail distributors throughout the state. Jamaican criminal groups, African American gangs, and local independent dealers distribute cocaine at wholesale and midlevel. At the retail level, loosely organized African American gangs and local independent dealers distribute powdered and crack cocaine.

Marijuana is the most readily available, commonly abused illicit drug in Maryland. Most of the marijuana available in the state is produced in Mexico; however, marijuana produced in Maryland is available to a lesser extent. Local independent dealers, primarily Caucasians, cultivate cannabis indoors and outdoors. Violence typically is not associated with marijuana abuse in Maryland, but violence associated with cannabis cultivation and marijuana distribution is a serious concern. Jamaican criminal groups are the dominant transporters of marijuana into Maryland; Mexican criminal groups transport lesser amounts into the state. Jamaican criminal groups are the dominant wholesale distributors of marijuana produced in Mexico. Local independent dealers, primarily Caucasians, are the dominant retail distributors of marijuana produced in the state as well as in Mexico. Outlaw motorcycle gangs also distribute marijuana at the retail level, but to a lesser extent.

Other dangerous drugs--including the stimulant MDMA, the hallucinogens LSD and ketamine, the depressant GHB, and diverted pharmaceuticals such as OxyContin, Ritalin, and Vicodin--constitute a significant and increasing threat to Maryland. According to law enforcement sources, teenagers and young adults are the principal abusers of most of the drugs in this category, except diverted pharmaceuticals. MDMA, primarily abused at nightclubs and raves, is the most frequently abused and widely available club drug in Maryland. The abuse of LSD is limited, but the drug is readily available in some parts of the state. GHB is readily available throughout central Maryland, and the drug is frequently abused at raves. Independent dealers, primarily Caucasians, are the dominant distributors of stimulants, hallucinogens, and depressants in the state. Diverted pharmaceutical drugs are a serious but often unrecognized threat throughout the state.

The abuse of methamphetamine in Maryland is limited, and the drug is infrequently available. Violent crime is not often associated with methamphetamine abuse or distribution in the state, but the potential for violence exists. Most of the methamphetamine available in the state is produced in Mexico, California, and southwestern states, although some is produced in Maryland. Mexican criminal groups are the dominant transporters and wholesale distributors of most of the methamphetamine available in the state. These groups transport methamphetamine primarily via package delivery services. Outlaw motorcycle gangs and local independent dealers are the dominant distributors of the drug at the retail level.