Pubdate: Sat, 31 Jan 2015
Source: Courier-Mail, The (Australia)
Copyright: 2015 Queensland Newspapers
Contact: http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/editorial/letter
Website: http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/98
Authors: Thomas Chamberlin and Damon Guppy

INMATES GETTING WASTED ON DRUGS

PRISONERS are getting high behind bars with almost every drug, 
including heroin, cocaine and marijuana, found in more than 2000 drug 
incidents across the state's jails.

Inmates were caught with drugs and utensils more than 670 times a 
year for the past three years, with the state's largest jails showing 
the worst results. Prisoners were also busted with alcohol, brewing 
implements, "smoking devices" and drug test decoys in the centres, 
documents obtained under Right to Information show.

Drug tests, both random and targeted, showed hundreds of prisoners 
were getting wasted on drugs, while hundreds more refused to give 
urine samples.

Syringes were found a staggering 522 times, showing hundreds of 
inmates circumvented tight security to smuggle in drug injectors.

Buprenorphine, found in Subutex and Suboxone used for opioid 
addiction, was seized about 150 times, with the two respective drugs 
also found on about 40 occasions.

There were 138 alcohol busts, 50 marijuana, 20 cocaine, five heroin 
and four methamphetamine cases over the three-year period.

There was also cases of LSD, or acid, and MDMA, the active ingredient 
in ecstasy, being found at Darling Downs jail and Brisbane Women's 
Correctional Centre respectively. Drug prices for marijuana and 
methamphetamines are up to four times more expensive inside jail, 
according to police, with a strip of Subutex cut into four pieces 
worth as much as $400.

Arthur Gorrie, the state's remand centre for prisoners, had the most 
incidents with 479 recorded, including 44 busts for alcohol, 150 
syringes, 13 cannabis, 10 amphetamines and eight cocaine.

In addition to the busts, the state's prisoners tested positive to 
drugs about 350 times in 2011-12, with an extra 300 inmates refusing 
to give urine samples in both targeted and random testing. These 
figures were almost mirrored in 2012-13 with 350 positive results and 
250 refusing.

In 2013-14, there were 100 positives and 140 refusals for random 
tests but targeted drug testing results were "no longer collected 
centrally", with no further explanation given for their exclusion in 
the figures.

Of the positive urine tests, buprenorphine made up almost 60 per cent 
of positives, followed by cannabis which was 16 per cent, 
benzodiazepines 9 per cent and amphetamines 5 per cent.

Figures obtained from the Department of Corrective Services show 
almost 2000 seizures of contraband items such as drugs, cigarettes, 
alcohol and weapons were recorded last year.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom