Drug Crime Trends

The most common drug crimes in Michigan involve marijuana, but it is becoming increasingly common to see cases involving heroin or any of the illegal drugs that are derived from heroin, such as the prescription opioids that are the gateway drugs to using heroin. Law enforcement is seeing crimes involving those drugs on a much more regular basis, and classify it as a growing drug-related trend in Michigan. Police officers are also seeing younger and younger people addicted to these prescription opioids, and this often leads to the use and addiction to heroin.

These sorts of crimes tend to occur in places like Michigan because of their significant population of young people, many college towns, and other places where there are lots of people that are in the more commonly drug-using age groups, which are late teens to late 20s. These crimes also tend to occur in one of Michigan's big cities, because those tend to be the hubs or the location where drugs are being sent to and then distributed from.

On the other hand, certain types of designer drugs or drugs that can be manufactured fairly easily in a laboratory will tend to be seen in more rural areas. This is because to produce those, it makes a very obvious smell, and to remain undetected, people want to be far away from other people so that the smell does not bring the attention of law enforcement.

In Michigan's Upper Peninsula, some towns have been taken over by heroin and other drugs that are derived from heroin. This is because dealers from lower Michigan bring the drugs to the Upper Peninsula, where they command a much higher price, leading to more profit. The profit from the drugs leads to greater availability which lends to more addiction.

In a small number of communities, the possession of small amounts of marijuana is, for all practical purposes, legal, but regarding drug cases in general, every court is different relative to things like bond, plea bargaining, and sentencing. Also, some communities have drug crime law enforcement units, and this can lead to higher instances of drug busts.

Because it is becoming increasingly common for kids as young as high school or junior high school to get started on opium-derived or opioid-derived drugs like hydrocodone and oxycodone, users become quickly addicted to those drugs. Later, when these drugs become too expensive or not available, they will move to heroin. Law enforcement is seeing all of those drugs and drug categories more frequently in many of the higher income suburban communities.

As a result, law enforcement in these communities is paying a lot closer attention to being aware of this and looking for drugs in things like traffic stops, school searches, and when they get called to house parties, because they are much more aware that those drugs might be present there. The trends in Michigan drug crimes indicate that the problem is becoming more severe, solidifying the need of experienced counsel for any individual facing a charge.