Abstract
This research paper will consist of an analysis of the use and abuse of illicit drugs within the prison systems on a global basis. With information gathered from various sources such as the internet and one on one interviews with an inmate in a male correctional facility and a former inmate of a female correctional facility I intend to show the rampant flow of drugs in and out of the prison system, the control of (or lack there of) by prison officials, the drug gangs and dealers in correctional facilities, the rate of addiction, and treatments available to inmates suffering from addiction.

The introduction of drugs into the prison system has been an issue for corrections staff for many years. Prison officials
The abstinence-based program, also known as the therapeutic community
(T.C.), is the most widely used drug prevention and treatment program found in prisons around the world. The concept of T.C. is to segregate the inmates who request drug treatment or are court ordered to be in a drug treatment program from other inmates. The theory in the T.C. program is segregation from the rest of the prison population is necessary in order to keep the negative aspects of prison life away from the inmates who are in treatment as the prison atmosphere works against drug treatment in several different ways.
During my research of drug abuse within the prison system, I interviewed a current male inmate confined in the Washington State Department of
Corrections. His name is Jay.3 He is thirty-five years old and has been incarcerated for the past eleven years. When I asked him about the use of drugs within the prison system here is what he had to say:

Q. How many in institutions have you been in?
A. I have been incarcerated in eight different institutions over the past eleven years.

Q. In your opinion is drug use and abuse a problem in America's prison system? A. No, I do not believe drug use and abuse is a problem in America's prison system. I don't condone the use of