Who Gets Arrested in Sacramento?
A Male Arrestee Profile
The Institute for Social Research
California State University, Sacramento
Principal Investigators: Joseph Sheley and Jacqueline Carrigan
Introduction
Few residents of the Sacramento area are likely to have much sense of who is arrested in
Sacramento County. Beyond the reasonable guess that most arrestees are young and male
what else do we know about them?
In fact, slightly more than 50,000 people are arrested and booked in Sacramento County
Jail each year. Close to 80 percent are males, and we are able to sketch a profile of
Sacramento’s average male arrestee. The information needed for the sketch is derived
from data collected quarterly from 2000 to 2002 from the Arrestee Drug Abuse
Monitoring (ADAM) program. ADAM is a federal study that gathers data about samples
of arrestees in the city’s main jail, surveys the arrestees themselves concerning drug use,
drug market involvement, arrest, and drug treatment history, and collects urine specimens
from surveyed inmates. Sacramento is an ADAM study site; the project is administered
by the Institute for Social Research at CSUS. The sampling process is such that the
percentages reported below differ by no more than 2 percent, in either direction, from the
true arrestee population.1
Highlights
Among the (perhaps) surprising findings of this study are that arrestees are more
“grounded” in the community than would otherwise be expected stereotypically by the
average citizen: more likely to have finished high school, more likely to be employed, less
likely to be homeless, very unlikely to be charged with a violent offense (homicide, rape,
aggravated assault, robbery). Half of the arrests in Sacramento County involve drug
possession, probation or parole violations, spouse or partner abuse, driving under the
influence of alcohol or other drugs, and disturbing the peace. More in line with common
stereotypes, arrestees are more likely than not to have tested positive for drugs at time of
arrest (though much more likely to be using marijuana and alcohol than such drugs as
cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamines). Men arrested in Sacramento reside in and are
arrested in areas all over the city and county; however, certain areas (downtown) and zip
1
Importantly, these data do not tell us about the characteristics of criminals who are not apprehended or
about the characteristics of the population on parole, probation, and imprisoned. Nor does this study
distinguish between arrestees who ultimately are found “guilty” and those found “not guilty” of the charges
for which they were arrested.
1
code designations (95814, 95815, 95823) are higher than would be expected statistically
in arrestee residence and place of arrest.
Sacramento Arrestee Profile
The ADAM data tell us that the average Sacramento male arrestee is:

Older than might be expected stereotypically, with a median age of 31 years;

Likely to be non-white (57 percent);

Very likely to have completed at least high school (75 percent);

Somewhat likely to be employed either part or full time (53 percent);

Somewhat likely never to have been married (54 percent);

Very likely not to be homeless (89 percent);

Likely to have no health insurance coverage (61 percent);

Very likely never to have been in an inpatient (79 percent) or an outpatient (86
percent) drug treatment program or a client of an inpatient mental health treatment
program (87 percent);

Somewhat likely (15 percent) to reside in the Downtown area of Sacramento,
relative to the likelihood of residents of other specific Sacramento areas to be
arrested;

Somewhat likely to reside in the 95814 or 95823 zip code areas (14 percent),
relative to the likelihood of residents of other specific Sacramento zip code areas
to be arrested;

Very likely to have tested positive for illegal drug use at the time of arrest (77
percent);

Somewhat likely to self-report heavy alcohol consumption (52 percent) and
marijuana use (53 percent) during the past 30 days.
Comparisons to Sacramento Males in General
Contrasted to Sacramento County adult males, arrestees are:
2

Disproportionately members of nonwhite populations (57 percent of arrestees
versus 38 percent of Sacramento County adult males);

Much less likely to have a college education (26 percent of arrestees versus 58
percent of Sacramento County adult males);

Much more likely to be unemployed (34 percent of arrestees versus 5 percent of
Sacramento County adult males);

Much less likely to be currently married (24 percent of arrestees versus 56
percent of Sacramento County adult males);

Likely to be younger (median age 31 for arrestees versus 47 for Sacramento
County adult males);
Types and Patterns of Criminal Behavior
Arrestees are:

Very likely to have a prior arrest record (87 percent) and to have served more than
24 hours in jail previously (86 percent);

Somewhat likely (26 percent) to have been arrested in the Downtown area of
Sacramento, relative to the likelihood that they would be arrested in other specific
areas of Sacramento;

Somewhat likely to have been arrested in the 95814, 95815, or 95823 zip codes
(27 percent), relative to the likelihood that they would be arrested in any other
specific zip code areas of Sacramento;

As likely to have been charged with one the following as the most serious reason
for arrest (51 percent) as to have been charged with any other offense or subset of
offenses as most serious: drug possession, probation/parole violation,
spouse/partner abuse (ranging from misdemeanor to felony level charges), driving
while intoxicated, and disturbing the peace;

Very unlikely to have been arrested for non-domestic violent crimes, such as rape,
robbery, aggravated assault, and murder (5 percent).

Less likely, if arrested for a non-domestic violent offense, to test positive for
illegal drug use (67 percent) than to test positive for illegal drug use if arrested for
a property offense (80 percent).
3
Table 1. Characteristics of Male Sacramento Arrestees by Type of Offense, 2000 to 2002
OFFENDER PROFILES
Race/Ethnicity
White
Black
Latino
Asian and Other Pacific Islander
Native American
Education
No Degree
High School Graduate
Vocational or Trade School
Some College or Two Year Degree
Four Year College Degree or Higher
Current Work Status
Working Full Time
Working Part Time
Active Military
Have a job, Not Currently Working
Seasonal Work, Not Currently Working
Unemployed, Looking for Work
Unemployed, Not Looking for Work
Full Time Homemaker
In School Only
Retired
Disable for Work
Current Health Coverage
Current Legal Marital Status
Single, Never Married
Divorced
Separated
Widowed
Married
Median Age
Homeless Past 30 Days
Ever in Inpatient Drug Treatment
Ever in Outpatient Drug Treatment
Ever a Mental Health Inpatient
Ever been Arrested Prior to this Arrest
Ever Served More than 24 Hours in Jail
Used Substance in the Last 30 Days
Marijuana
Crack or Rock Cocaine
Powder Cocaine
Heroin
Methamphetamine
Heavy Alcohol Consumption
At Risk for
Alcohol Abuse
Alcohol Dependency
Drug Abuse
Drug Dependency
Positive Drug Screen Results
Domestic
Violence
Offense
Other
Violent
Offense
Drug
Offense
Property
Offense
Other
Offense
All
Offenses
35%
39%
22%
2%
1%
41%
37%
15%
5%
1%
48%
30%
17%
4%
1%
39%
40%
15%
5%
1%
44%
40%
14%
1%
1%
43%
37%
16%
3%
1%
23%
32%
11%
29%
4%
26%
30%
11%
27%
6%
25%
42%
10%
20%
3%
23%
42%
9%
24%
2%
26%
40%
10%
21%
3%
25%
39%
10%
23%
3%
54%
8%
0%
1%
2%
14%
2%
1%
2%
3%
11%
49%
54%
9%
1%
1%
4%
19%
4%
1%
3%
1%
4%
45%
43%
10%
0%
1%
1%
23%
8%
1%
1%
2%
11%
38%
39%
14%
0%
0%
1%
25%
9%
0%
4%
0%
6%
39%
35%
11%
0%
1%
3%
29%
9%
0%
1%
2%
9%
37%
42%
11%
0%
.5%
2%
24%
8%
.5%
1%
2%
9%
39%
35%
14%
8%
1%
42%
31
2%
18%
9%
16%
83%
80%
60%
9%
7%
1%
23%
30
8%
16%
14%
13%
76%
76%
51%
19%
6%
1%
24%
32
9%
18%
16%
10%
89%
87%
67%
10%
5%
0%
18%
24
11%
20%
12%
10%
81%
80%
55%
14%
7%
1%
22%
33
17%
25%
14%
17%
92%
92%
54%
14%
7%
1%
24%
31
11%
21%
14%
13%
87%
86%
55%
11%
2%
2%
17%
53%
46%
9%
4%
3%
22%
49%
52%
14%
4%
5%
38%
49%
58%
17%
4%
5%
27%
47%
53%
15%
4%
9%
23%
56%
53%
14%
4%
6%
28%
52%
7%
36%
13%
35%
7%
35%
16%
39%
8%
29%
10%
52%
9%
30%
10%
52%
10%
39%
12%
48%
9%
34%
12%
48%
68%
67%
82%
80%
76%
77%
4
Table 2. OFFENDER PROFILE
Male
Arrestees
Sacramento
County
Adult Males
Race/Ethnicity
White
Black
Latino
Asian and Other Pacific Islander
Native American
43%
37%
16%
3%
1%
62%
9%
15%
10%
1%
Education
No Degree
High School Graduate
Vocational or Trade School
Some College or Two Year Degree
Four Year College Degree or Higher
25%
39%
10%
23%
3%
19%
23%
34%
24%
Current Work Status
Employed
Active Military
Unemployed
Not in the Work Force
53%
1%
34%
12%
64%
.5%
5%
31%
Current Legal Marital Status
Single, Never Married
Divorced
Separated
Widowed
Married
54%
14%
7%
1%
24%
28%
11%
3%
3%
56%
Median Age of Adult Males
31
47
Based on Sacramento Male ADAM Data for 2000 to 2002 and Census 2000 data.
5
Table 3a. Most Common Area of Arrest in Sacramento by Type of Offense
All Offenses
Domestic
Other Violent
Drug Offenses
Violence
Offenses
Downtown
South
Downtown
Downtown
Sacramento/Florin
(26%)
(14%)
(23%)
(29%)
Property
Offenses
Downtown
Other Offenses
(19%)
(30%)
Downtown
Table 3b. Most Common Area of Residence of the Arrestees in Sacramento by Type of Offense
All Offenses
Domestic
Other Violent
Drug Offenses
Property
Violence
Offenses
Offenses
Downtown
South
South
Downtown
South
Sacramento/Florin
Sacramento/Florin
Sacramento/Florin
(15%)
(12%)
(17%)
(14%)
(15%)
Table 3c. Three Most Common Zip Codes of Arrest in Sacramento by Type of Offense
All Offenses
Domestic
Other Violent
Drug Offenses
Violence
Offenses
95814 (13%)
95823 (8%)
95814 (12%)
95814 (14%)
95815 (7%)
95814 (7%)
95823 (8%)
95820 (6%)
95823 (7%)
95815 (6%)
95820 (7%)
95823 (6%)
Property
Offenses
95814 (10%)
95823 (9%)
95815 (9%)
Other Offenses
Downtown
(19%)
Other Offenses
95814 (17%)
95815 (10%)
95823 (7%)
Table 3d. Three Most Common Zip Codes of Residence in Sacramento by Type of Offense
All Offenses
Domestic
Other Violent
Drug Offenses
Property
Other Offenses
Violence
Offenses
Offenses
95823 (7%)
95823 (7%)
95823 (10%)
95822 (7%)
95823 (9%)
95814 (11%)
95814 (7%)
95821 (6%)
95824 (5%)
95814 (6%)
homeless (6%)
95823 (8%)
homeless (6%)
95815 (5%)
95815 (4%)
95838 (5%)
95660 (6%)
homeless (7%)
The percentage of the adult male Sacramento County population who live in any of the above zip codes ranges between 2 % and 5%
according to 2000 Census data.
Table 4. Five Most Common Primary Offenses by Male Sacramento Arrestees, ADAM
2000 to 2002.
Drug Possession
Probation/Parole Violation
Spouse/Partner Abuse
DWI/DUI
Public Peace Disturbance
Number
3271
2574
1785
1765
1454
Percent
16%
12%
8%
8%
7%
51%
6