Police 

A Reading List on Responding to Drug-Related Offending through Science-Based Policy and Practice

Reading List

As justice systems increasingly shift their focus from punishment to rehabilitation, it becomes essential to understand the complex relationship between substance use, criminal behaviour, and treatment, particularly among individuals whose involvement with the system stems from substance use.

Protecting Youth from Mexican Drug Cartel Recruitment: The Prospects of Educational Interventions

Scientific article

1 May 2023

This investigation considers the impact of Mexico’s War on Drugs since 2006 and the influence of widespread cartel networks on the youth population. As both victims and perpetrators of drug-related crime, the young individuals of Mexico are...

Recruitment of minors into organised crime

Scientific article

17 June 2025

The recruitment of minors into serious and organised crime has increasingly become a tactic used by criminal networks to avoid detection, capture and prosecution. By using minors, the criminal networks increase the distance between the...

Addressing the recruitment of young people into criminal drugs networks

Report

17 June 2026

This report examines how and why young people are recruited into criminal drug networks across Europe. It highlights the range of factors that can increase vulnerability to recruitment, including social and economic disadvantage, peer...

Faith-Based Interventions for Reducing Gang Violence in the Caribbean: Reflections from a Professor and a Priest

Book

1 January 2015

This book chapter explores the role of faith-based interventions in preventing and reducing gang violence in Trinidad and Tobago. Drawing on the experiences of a criminologist and a religious leader, it argues that gang violence should be...

Religiosity and crime: Evidence from a city-wide shock

Scientific article

1 April 2025

This study examines the relationship between religiosity and crime using data from the 2015 visit of Pope Francis to Philadelphia. By analysing daily crime reports before, during, and after the visit, the researchers found a significant...

Exploring Community Responses to the Substance Use Crisis

23 June 2026

Online

Canada

July 23, 2026, 1-2 pm ET

Law Enforcement and Prevention of Problem Behaviors: An Important Connection to Improve the Health and Safety of Our Communities

Scientific article

9 June 2026

Why is the connection between law enforcement and prevention of problem behaviors such as substance use important? Perhaps it is Safety within our communities. While law enforcement is responsible for enforcing laws and maintaining public...

Drug production and precursors — EUDA ongoing activities

Website

The European Union Drugs Agency (EUDA) continues to monitor illicit drug production and precursor chemicals across Europe to improve understanding of how drug markets are evolving. Production within the European Union is primarily focused...

The Role of Law Enforcement in the Reduction of Substance Use and Other Behavioral Health Risks: Substance Use as a Focus: United States as an Example

Scientific article

1 May 2025

This paper explores how law enforcement can contribute to the prevention of substance use and other behavioural health risks beyond their traditional enforcement role. Using the United States as an example, it argues that police and other...