Rosa, Fábia Ileanna GondimAguiar, Denison Melo de2020-06-232024-09-262020-06-222020-06-232020-03-16ABSTRACT Despite growing evidence that dependence is a treatable brain disease, most individuals do not receive treatment. Involvement in the criminal justice system often results from illegal drug search behavior and participation in illegal activities that reflect, in part, the disruptive behavior resulting from brain changes triggered by repeated drug use. Dealing with drug offenders provides a unique opportunity to reduce substance abuse and reduce associated criminal behavior. Thus, the purpose of this article is to present a literature review about drug abuse and the Brazilian criminal justice system. The research had a qualitative approach of exploratory nature and as far as procedures were concerned, the bibliographic research was used, which made possible to understand better the importance of the proposed subject. It is concluded that the challenge of delivering treatment in a criminal environment requires the cooperation and coordination of two different cultures: the organized criminal justice system to punish the perpetrator and protect society and drug abuse treatment systems organized to assist the dependent individual. Keywords: Drugs; Justice; Treatment.2525-4537https://ri.uea.edu.br/handle/riuea/5884ABSTRACT Despite growing evidence that dependence is a treatable brain disease, most individuals do not receive treatment. Involvement in the criminal justice system often results from illegal drug search behavior and participation in illegal activities that reflect, in part, the disruptive behavior resulting from brain changes triggered by repeated drug use. Dealing with drug offenders provides a unique opportunity to reduce substance abuse and reduce associated criminal behavior. Thus, the purpose of this article is to present a literature review about drug abuse and the Brazilian criminal justice system. The research had a qualitative approach of exploratory nature and as far as procedures were concerned, the bibliographic research was used, which made possible to understand better the importance of the proposed subject. It is concluded that the challenge of delivering treatment in a criminal environment requires the cooperation and coordination of two different cultures: the organized criminal justice system to punish the perpetrator and protect society and drug abuse treatment systems organized to assist the dependent individual. Keywords: Drugs; Justice; Treatment.Acesso AbertoAtribuição-NãoComercial-SemDerivados 3.0 Brasilhttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/br/DrogasJustiçaTratamentoArtigo de PeriódicoDireito