Reactions of drug markets to the police intervention: Reduction or displacement

Abstract

Increasing costs and risks of crimes is emphasized in the police controls of drug markets. So that, dealers will be reluctant to work in the market or arrested. From this viewpoint, reactions of drug markets and dealers against these programs determine their effectiveness. So, the main question is how drug markets respond to the police programs? Whether these policies decrease supplying of drugs or induce temporal, tactical, and geographical displacements in drug markets?In this study, three methods were used: a) in depth interview with 27 drug dealers b) non-participant observation of drug dealers activities in the drug market, and c) discourse analysis of formal official. The Findings suggest that dealers manage the risks in drug markets by different strategies: Changing times of selling drugs, using different techniques such as carrying small amount of drugs, changing market place, selling drugs to friends and etc. From this point of view, staying in the drug market and selling drugs challenges the effectiveness of police intervention in drug markets. Moreover, the entry of new dealers, change in type of drugs and adding impurities in the drugs make police interventions ineffective.

Keywords

• police programs
• displacement
• effectiveness
• drug dealers