Drugs, Detention, and Death

Abstract

It has been theorized that drug abusers recently released from prison have an increased risk of fatal drug overdose. The objective of this study was to determine whether persons released from prison in the state of New Mexico have an increased risk of death due to unintentional drug overdose in the time immediately after release from prison. A total of 96 people were identified who had been released from prison and subsequently suffered an unnatural death in 2001 through 2003. Among those who had drug-caused deaths, there was a significantly increased risk of dying in the first 2 weeks after release versus the subsequent 10 weeks RR = 3.08 (P < 0.001, 95% CI: 1.83-5.16). For those who died in the first 2 months after release, there was an increased risk of fatal drug overdose compared with dying of other unnatural causes (P = 0.025). Of those who died of fatal drug overdoses within the first 2 months, the average incarceration time was significantly longer than those who lived longer than 2 months after release (P = 0.021) and they were more likely to have used opiates (P < 0.0001) and sedatives (P = 0.01). Prisoners are at an increased risk of a fatal unintentional drug overdose immediately after release. The time surrounding release provides an opportunity for education on the risks of accidental overdose and the development of interventions to mitigate these risks.

Researching Suicide, Attempted Suicide and Near-Lethal Self-Harm by Offenders in Community Settings: Challenges for Future Research

“…Although they have not focused solely on community-sentenced offenders, these studies are helpful to highlight the problem of suicide in this population, as many of these offenders will still be supervised by the probation service. Offenders who leave prison have been found to be more vulnerable to suicide than the general population (Binswanger et al, 2007;Chapman et al, 2006;Kariminia et al, 2007;Butler, Jones, Kariminia, & Law, 2011;Henderson, Hobbs, Knuiman, Ridot, & Stewart, 2004) although one study has found released offenders to be equally as vulnerable to suicide as the general population (Brown, Krinsky, Lathrop, & Nolte, 2009). The first two weeks of release appear to be the most risky time for a suicide to occur (Binswanger et al, 2007;Kariminia et al, 2007).…”

A randomized controlled trial of prison-initiated buprenorphine: Prison outcomes and community treatment entry

“…However, many inmates with heroin addiction histories remain untreated in prison (Kastelic et al, 2008; Stover and Michels, 2010; Taxman et al, 2007). As a consequence, heroin addiction continues or resumes rapidly following release from incarceration (Dolan et al, 2007; Kinlock et al, 2011; Strang et al, 2006) and it contributes to high rates of HIV and hepatitis infection (Dolan et al, 2007; Kanato, 2008), overdose death among newly released inmates (Binswanger et al, 2011, 2012; Krinsky et al, 2009; Merral et al, 2010), increased criminal activity (Kinlock et al, 2003; Inciardi, 2008), and re-incarceration (Dolan et al, 2005; Metz et al, 2010). Thus, increased access to effective treatment interventions that begin during incarceration and continue in the community are needed for inmates with heroin addiction histories (Chandler et al, 2009; Dolan et al, 2007; Kinlock et al, 2011).…”

Prevalence and factors associated with smoking tobacco among men recently released from prison in California: A cross-sectional study

“…Department of Justice, 2012), and 700,000 are released annually (Travis 2005). People with a history of incarceration often have compromised health (Wang et al, 2009; Binswanger et al, 2011; Massoglia 2008) and post-incarceration mortality rates are higher than population mortality (Binswanger et al, 2007; Kariminia et al 2007; Stewart et al, 2004, Bird et al, 2003; Krinsky et al, 2009; Binswanger et al 2011; Merrall et al, 2010). …”