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National Drug Intelligence Center National Drug Threat Assessment 2003 January 2003 Scope and MethodologyThe National Drug Threat Assessment 2003 is a comprehensive assessment of the threat posed to the United States by the trafficking and abuse of illicit drugs. The National Drug Intelligence Center (NDIC) prepared the assessment through detailed analysis of the most recently available reporting from law enforcement, intelligence, and public health agencies. A critical component of this undertaking was information provided by nearly 2,900 state and local law enforcement agencies through NDIC's National Drug Threat Survey 2002. Approximately 2,400 of these agencies were part of a probability-based sample surveyed to provide nationally and regionally representative data. (Details on survey methodology are provided in Appendix A.) State and local law enforcement agencies also provided information through personal interviews with NDIC's Field Program Specialists, a network of retired law enforcement professionals under contract with NDIC to promote information sharing among federal, state, and local counterdrug agencies. These agencies have been invaluable but are too many to mention individually. This report addresses the trafficking and use of primary substances of abuse as well as the laundering of drug proceeds. Major substances of abuse are discussed in terms of their availability, demand, production and cultivation, transportation, and distribution. Primary market areas for each drug are identified and addressed in the report (see Figure 4). Primary market areas for cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin, and MDMA were determined through analysis of public health data and law enforcement reporting regarding use in these areas and the extent to which wholesale quantities are distributed from these areas to other markets. Primary market areas for marijuana were determined based on distribution alone.
This report cites trademarked names such as OxyContin and Rohypnol in discussing the diversion and abuse of such substances. The use of any trademarked names in this assessment does not imply any criminal activity, criminal intent, or misdealing on the part of the companies that manufacture these drugs. All such citations are made for reference purposes only. National Drug Threat Survey data used in this report do not imply there is only one drug threat per region or that only one drug is available per region. A percentage given for a region represents the proportion of state and local law enforcement agencies in that region that identified a particular drug as their greatest threat or as available at high, medium, or low levels. Regions reported in this assessment correspond to the nine Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) regions (see Figures 1, 2, and 3).
End Note1. In this assessment wholesale distribution refers to the level at which drugs are purchased directly from a source of supply and sold, typically, to midlevel distributors in pound, kilogram, or multi-unit quantities. Midlevel distribution refers to the level at which drugs are purchased directly from wholesalers in pound, kilogram, or multi-unit quantities and sold in smaller quantities to other midlevel distributors or to retail distributors. Retail distribution refers to the level at which drugs are sold directly to users.
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