COUNTY JAIL INMATES TEST HIGH FOR POT

Oklahoma County led the nation in the percentage of males who tested
positive for marijuana after being arrested and jailed, a nationwide study
found in 1998.

The study is continuing at the Oklahoma County jail, where graduate
students give people who have been arrested candy bars in exchange for an
interview and a urine sample. Preliminary numbers show the county may still
be in first place for arrestees who test positive for pot.

University of Oklahoma graduate students started the work in September 1998
and found pot is popular, at least among those men arrested and included in
their federally funded study.

The study does not answer why marijuana use is so high among people
arrested here.

Oklahoma City is one of 35 cities nationwide where the U.S. Justice
Department study is being conducted in city and county jails. This year,
students are also testing women.

A promise of confidentiality and the candy bar is offered to people
arrested on various complaints if they agree to answer questions and
provide a urine sample. So, far 95 percent of those asked have cooperated,
said Kelly Damphousse, OU assistant sociology professor and director of the
study.

"What we have found is marijuana is popular in Oklahoma for whatever
reason. It may be cultural. It may be because of the region," Damphousse said.

Oklahoma County Sheriff John Whetsel said, "Where we are in the central
United States give us a direct access to the flow of marijuana out of
Mexico. Also the climate provides excellent growing conditions. I think
that may have something to do with it as well as the fact that we have very
aggressive narcotics enforcement efforts here and we don't overlook
marijuana."

"We've had people say they won't do it and then we say we'll give you a
candy bar and they say OK," Damphousse said. Damphousse, 36, is the
director of the study.

The study was started in the mid-1980s to monitor trends in drug use among
people arrested.

The work has shown that methamphetamine use is rare in the northeastern
United States but more common in the southwest and far west, he said.

In 1998, the state Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse, and
other state agencies, asked the Justice Department to include Oklahoma City
in the study. OU was awarded the contract to do the work.

Pam McKeown, Department of Mental Health spokeswoman, said the study helps
detect trends in drug use.

"It helps our department determine future treatment needs," McKeown said.

McKeown said drug use surveys of the general population in Oklahoma show
the average rate for marijuana use among 18-year-olds is the same as the
national average and slightly below the national average for pot use
overall. The number of arrestees who use marijuana is higher though.

Damphousse said, "We've never known before how many people have drugs in
their system when they are arrested, this gives us a picture of what kinds
of drugs criminals are using in our city."

The Justice Department pays OU $28,000 for two weeks of work. The study is
performed quarterly at the Oklahoma County jail. Local law agencies will
get the results of the study.

When the 1998 tests showed 53 percent of males arrested showed signs of
marijuana use, he first thought "we might have gotten a bad sample."

Further testing showed the high numbers were consistent.

In August, a study of 250 men and 100 women in Oklahoma showed 47 percent
of men and 46 percent of women tested positive for marijuana. The results
of the nationwide study were not available.

It showed that 90 percent of 15-20-year-olds arrested here test positive
for marijuana.

The second leading drug detected at the Oklahoma County jail was cocaine,
about 30 percent, and methamphetamines about 8 percent.

Damphousse, a criminologist with a doctorate degree, has also studied long
term consequences of drug use among criminals. He plans to write a research
paper on the findings at the Oklahoma County jail.

He said the study could be extended to Tulsa next year.