The number of felony and misdemeanor drug arrests per 1,000 residents.
Drug use, sale and other illegal drug-related activity can have immediate as well as long-term negative health, social and economic consequences, both for individuals and for neighborhoods and communities.
In Essex County, almost 740 people were arrested for drug-related crimes in 2024 - a rate of about 0.9 arrests per 1,000 residents. This is slightly higher than the statewide figure of 0.8. In general, the rate of arrests for drug-related crimes in the County has remained fairly steady since 2020, while rates in Haverhill and Lawrence have consistently remained above the county average during this same time period.
Essex County had a higher rate compared to Middlesex, MA at 0.5 and a lower rate than Westchester, NY at 1.2 and Lake County, IL 1.1.
Comparable national data was not available. The City of Lawrence did not report data prior to 2020 so county-wide rates are not fully comparable prior to this year. Differences in rates may reflect a variety of factors, including differences in laws and law enforcement priorities, in addition the severity of drug activity in an area.
| 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Essex County, MA | 1.0 | 1.1 | 0.9 | 0.9 | 0.9 |
| Amesbury | 0.5 | 0.4 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Beverly | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.4 | 0.2 | 0.5 |
| Gloucester | 0.5 | 1.4 | 0.8 | 1.8 | 1.0 |
| Haverhill | 2.0 | 2.4 | 2.5 | 2.9 | 1.9 |
| Lawrence | 5.0 | 3.7 | 2.0 | 1.7 | 1.6 |
| Lynn | 1.0 | 0.7 | 0.7 | 0.8 | 1.7 |
| Methuen | 0.6 | 0.4 | 1.3 | 0.8 | |
| Newburyport | 0.2 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 |
| Peabody | 0.2 | 0.1 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.6 |
| Salem | 1.1 | 1.6 | 0.8 | 0.8 | 0.9 |
| Andover | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.4 | 0.3 | 0.3 |
| Danvers | 0.6 | 0.5 | 0.3 | 0.5 | 0.1 |
| Essex | 0.3 | 0.5 | 0.3 | 0.3 | |
| Georgetown | 0.2 | 0.4 | |||
| Groveland | 0.2 | 0.1 | |||
| Hamilton | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 | ||
| Ipswich | 0.2 | 0.1 | 0.3 | ||
| Lynnfield | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 | ||
| Manchester | 0.9 | 0.4 | 0.9 | 0.8 | |
| Marblehead | 0.1 | ||||
| Merrimac | 0.1 | 0.5 | 0.5 | ||
| Middleton | 0.1 | 0.1 | |||
| Newbury | 0.1 | 0.5 | 0.2 | 0.2 | |
| North Andover | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 |
| Rowley | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.2 | ||
| Salisbury | 1.0 | 1.2 | 1.4 | 0.7 | 0.4 |
| Saugus | 0.4 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.2 |
| Swampscott | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 |
| Topsfield | 0.3 | 0.5 | |||
| West Newbury | 0.2 | 1.4 | 0.2 | 0.2 | |
| Middlesex County, MA | 0.4 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 0.5 | 0.5 |
| Lake County, IL | 1.1 | 0.6 | 0.8 | 1.0 | 1.1 |
| Westchester County, NY | 1.3 | 0.9 | 0.8 | 1.0 | 1.2 |
| Massachusetts | 0.8 | 0.8 | 0.7 | 0.8 | 0.8 |
| 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Essex County, MA | 814 | 896 | 703 | 745 | 736 |
| Amesbury | 9 | 7 | 3 | 5 | 7 |
| Beverly | 7 | 13 | 16 | 10 | 21 |
| Gloucester | 14 | 42 | 23 | 53 | 30 |
| Haverhill | 130 | 155 | 166 | 195 | 124 |
| Lawrence | 397 | 302 | 180 | 151 | 144 |
| Lynn | 98 | 64 | 67 | 84 | 171 |
| Methuen | 28 | 23 | 66 | 43 | |
| Newburyport | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| Peabody | 12 | 7 | 15 | 12 | 30 |
| Salem | 47 | 70 | 37 | 36 | 40 |
| Andover | 7 | 12 | 14 | 9 | 12 |
| Danvers | 17 | 15 | 8 | 13 | 4 |
| Essex | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | |
| Georgetown | 2 | 3 | |||
| Groveland | 1 | 1 | |||
| Hamilton | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||
| Ipswich | 3 | 1 | 4 | ||
| Lynnfield | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||
| Manchester | 5 | 2 | 5 | 4 | |
| Marblehead | 1 | ||||
| Merrimac | 1 | 3 | 3 | ||
| Middleton | 1 | 1 | |||
| Newbury | 1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | |
| North Andover | 5 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
| Rowley | 1 | 2 | 1 | ||
| Salisbury | 10 | 12 | 13 | 6 | 4 |
| Saugus | 12 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 5 |
| Swampscott | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Topsfield | 2 | 3 | |||
| West Newbury | 1 | 7 | 1 | 1 | |
| Middlesex County, MA | 652 | 644 | 604 | 721 | 724 |
| Lake County, IL | 769 | 433 | 548 | 719 | 788 |
| Westchester County, NY | 1,327 | 935 | 797 | 1,003 | 1,193 |
| Massachusetts | 5,245 | 5,509 | 4,704 | 5,433 | 5,544 |
| INDICATORS | TREND | ESSEX COUNTY |
|---|
