Forensic Science and Drugs of Abuse

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Forensic Science and Drugs of Abuse
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Requirements of Forensic Science

• Meet the Federal Rules of Evidence
• 0-50
• Mere suspicion
• Reasonable suspicion
• Probable cause

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Requirements of Forensic Science

• Meet the Federal Rules of Evidence
• 50-95
• Preponderance of evidence
• 95-99.9
• Beyond a reasonable doubt

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Advantages and Disadvantages Blood

• Advantages
• Less susceptible to adulteration
• Quantitative- can tell how much drug is present
• Shorter detection times ?
• can make a better guess about when drug was
  ingested

• Disadvantages
• Difficult to collect in time
• Strict regulations on collection and testing
  procedure
• Labor-intensive and expensive

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Advantages and Disadvantages Urine

• Advantages
• Easily collected
• Can be more quickly and easily screened
• Longer detection times

• Disadvantages
• Not quantitative
• Easily adulterated
• Difficult to predict when drug was used

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Forensic Urine Drug Testing

• Urine is the fluid and dissolved substances
  secreted by the kidneys, stored in the bladder,
  and excreted from the body through the urethra.

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Nature of Forensic Urine

• The nature of forensic urine is affected by many
  issues.
• Individual physiology
• Medical conditions and treatments
• Diet and exercise
• Collection time and circumstances
• Adulteration

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Characteristics of Normal Urine

• Temperature 90 100 F
• Color Yellow
• Appearance Clear
• Specific Gravity 1.003 1.035
• Glucose Negative
• Bilirubin Negative
• Ketones Negative
• Occult Blood Negative
• Protein Negative
• Nitrite Negative (0-500 mg/L)
• Leukocyte esterase Negative

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Methods of Adulteration

• Dilution / diuresis
• Additives
• Substitution

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Specimen Integrity Testing for Adulterants

• Color and Appearance
• Temperature (90 - 100 F)
• Creatinine (20 400 mg/dl)
• Nitrite (0 500 mg/L)
• pH (4.5 9.0)
• Specific Gravity (1.003 1.035 units)

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Dilution / Diuresis

• Consuming large quantities of fluid to dilute
  metabolites
• Diuretics
• Coffee, cranberry juice, iced tea, herbal tea,
  grapes, herbal diuretics
• Commercial detoxification agents

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Dilution / Diuresis

• Ultimate blend
• Carbo Clean
• Naturally Klean Herbal Tea
• Goldenseal
• Certa or Certo (pectin)
• Vales Original Formula

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Dilution / Diuresis

• Vinegar
• Fiber
• Lecithin
• Lasix (Rx)
• Aspirin
• Niacin
• Zinc sulfate
• Puri Blend (claimed blocker)
• The Stuff (claimed blocker)

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Tests to Detect Dilution /DiuresisAdulteration

• Temperature
• Color and Appearance
• Creatinine
• Specific Gravity

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Additives / Doping

• Water
• Coloring
• Powdered bleach
• Klear (nitrite)
• Ammonia
• Blood
• Drano
• Goldenseal
• 30 Hydrogen peroxide
• Lemon juice
• Liquid soap

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Additives / Doping

• Mary Janes SuperClean 13
• Purifyit
• Sodium nitrate
• Table salt
• UrinAid
• Vinegar
• Visine
• WD40
• Papain

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Tests to Detect Additives Adulteration

• Temperature
• Color and Appearance
• Nitrite
• pH
• Specific Gravity

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Substitution

• Use purchased urine liquid or dried
• Urine transportation system Urinator
• Bladder Injection
• Dog urine does not work
• Stealing urine

The Whizzinator
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Tests to Detect SubstitutionAdulteration

• Temperature
• Color and Appearance
• Creatinine
• Specific Gravity

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Forensic Urine Drug Screen Tests

• Amphetamine / Methamphetamine (1000 ng/ml)
• Barbiturate (300 ng/ml)
• Benzodiazepine (300 ng/ml)
• Cocaine (300 ng/ml)
• Alcohol, Ethyl (0 )
• Opiate (2000 ng/ml)
• THC / marijuana (50 ng/ml)
• Specimen integrity tests

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Drug Detection Rate

• Amphetamine / Methamphetamine (3)
• Barbiturate (5)
• Benzodiazepine (12)
• Cocaine (8)
• Alcohol, Ethyl (3)
• Opiate (22)
• THC / marijuana (47)

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Drug Detection Times

• Amphetamine / Methamphetamine (2-4 days)
• Barbiturate
• (1 day Seconal 2-3 weeks - Phenobarbital)
• Benzodiazepine (3-7 days)
• Cocaine (2-4 days)
• Alcohol, Ethyl (12 24 hours)
• Opiate (2-4 days)
• THC / marijuana (3-30 days)

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Amphetamine / Methamphetamine

• Stimulants
• Biphetamine
• Dexedrine
• Desoxyn
• MDMA (methylenedioxy-methamphetamine

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Barbiturate

• Depressant
• Amytal
• Nembutal
• Seconal
• Phenobarbital

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Benzodiazepine

• Depressant
• Ativan
• Halcion
• Librium
• Valium
• Xanax
• (Rohypnol Mexican Valium)

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Cocaine

• Stimulant
• Cocaine

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Alcohol, Ethyl

• Depressant
• Beer, wine, spirits

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Opiate

• Pain relief, depressant
• Codeine
• Fiorinal, Empirin, Tylenol with codeine
• Robitussin A-C
• Fentanyl (Actiq, Duragesic, Sublimaze)
• Heroin (diacetylmorphine)
• Morphine (Roxanol, Duramorph)
• Opium (laudanum, paregoric)
• Oxycodone HCl (Oxycontin)
• Vicodin (hydrocodone bitartrate)

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THC /Marijuana

• Cannabinoid
• Hashish
• Marijuana

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Other Drugs of Interest

• Depressants
• GHB (gamma-hydroxybutyrate)
• Methaqualone (Quaalude, Sopor, Parest)
• Dissociative Anesthetics
• Ketamine (Ketalar SV)
• PCP and analogs (phencyclidine)

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Other Drugs of Interest

• Hallucinogens
• LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide)
• Mescaline (peyote)
• Psilocybin (mushroom)
• Steroids
• Anabolic (Anadrol, Oxandrin, Durabolin,
  Depo-Testosterone, Equipoise

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Other Drugs of Interest

• Inhalants
• Solvents (paint thinners, gasoline, glues)
• Gases (butane, propane, aerosol propellants,
  nitrous oxides)
• Nitrites (isoamyl, isobutyl, cyclohexyl)

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Forensic Drug Testing

• Presumptive Tests- these tests are used for
  screening, or determining the presence of a
  certain amount of a drug or drug metabolites
• Metabolite- a chemical produced when the body
  breaks down a drug

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Presumptive Tests

• EMIT (Enzyme Multiplied Immunoassay Test)
• RIA (Radioimmunoassay)
• ELISA (Enzyme-linked immunosorbency assay)

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Presumptive tests

• These immunoassays are considered presumptive
  rather than conclusive because other similar
  substances in the sample could yield a false
  positive.
• Can you think of any substances that would
  yield a false positive on an immunoassay?

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Some common causes of false positives in
presumptive tests
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Confirmatory Tests

• Gas Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry (GC/MS)

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GC/MS

• Sample is injected into GC unit
• Different chemicals in sample are separated as
  they travel around the column at different speeds
• As the chemicals exit the column, they are blown
  apart, and their parts are compared with knowns

Heroin
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Effects of Drugs of Abuse on the Brain

• Almost all drugs of abuse change the way the
  brain works by affecting chemical
  neurotransmission.
• Heroin and LSD mimic the effects of natural
  neurotransmitters.
• PCP blocks receptors and interrupts neuronal
  messages

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Effects of Drugs of Abuse on the Brain

• PCP blocks receptors and interrupts neuronal
  messages
• Cocaine blocks re-uptake of neurotransmitters
• Amphetamines cause the release of excessive
  amounts of neurotransmitters

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Effects of Drugs of Abuse on the Brain

• THC binds to and activates receptors in the
  cerebellum and hippocampus. Binding interferes
  with the normal activity of neurons in these
  areas