BOISE, Idaho (AP) - Heroin use is increasing across America but doesn’t appear to be widespread in Idaho, accounting for only about 1 percent of all drug arrests in the state.
However, Idaho State Police report a significant increase in heroin arrests - a 60 percent jump from 2011 to 2012, as the numbers of arrests rose from 75 to 120 in just one year.
Heroin surpassed cocaine in 2012, making up 1.1 percent of all drug arrests, according to a study by the Idaho Statistical Analysis Center. ISP seized 348.4 grams in 2012, down from 496.7 grams in 2011.
According to ISP statistics, those arrested in connection with heroin were almost always white (92.2 percent) and mostly male (68.9 percent).
The average age of those arrested was between 27 and 28. That’s a younger trend then in the previous year when arrestees averaged older than 30.
But the number of Idahoans who die from heroin use is harder to measure. The state tracks that information via death certificate, but often, a cause of death is simply listed as “overdose,” rather than specifying the substance. That can make it difficult to tell whether someone died from ingesting heroin or another drug.
But drug-related deaths are on an upward swing: 184 in 2009, up from 154 the year before and a significant jump from 69 deaths in 2000. There were a total of 1,244 drug-induced deaths of Idahoans between 2000 and 2009.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.