Forensics Journal - Stevenson University 2012 | Page 16

STEVENSON UNIVERSITY

Forensic Drug Analysis Backlog Remedy
Aubrie Jacqueline St.Clair

their drug backlog with the use of field drug tests. Field drug tests are
small kits that a trained police officer uses to identify a controlled substance. The field test kits are small pouches or capsules that contain a
series of chemicals that produce a color change for a specific drug.

INTRODUCTION
Marijuana is a greenish-brown mixture of leaves, stems and seeds
derived from the plant cannabis sativa L. The active ingredient in
marijuana is tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which is highly concentrated in the flower and leaves (Trimm, 2005). Marijuana is the most
commonly used illicit drug in the United States. According to the
National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), 15.2 million
people reported using marijuana in 2008 and marijuana was the only
drug used by 53.3 percent of illicit drug users (Volkow, 2002, p. 2).
The Controlled Substance Act of 1970 placed marijuana as a Schedule
I drug under federal law (Drug Enforcement Administration, n.d.).
According to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) 1,324
kilograms of marijuana were seized in 2008 (Drug Enforcement
Administration, 2010). This was the most seized drug when compared
to cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine and methylenedioxymethamphetamine.

Field test kits were first invented in 1970 in order to provide a portable kit for the rapid detection of a narcotic, dangerous drug, or other
drug (U.S. Patent No. 3,748,098, 1973). A qualitative analysis device,
which allows for the serial extraction and reaction of vegetable matter
to determine if the vegetable matter contains cannabis material, was
patented on February 6, 1973 (U.S. Patent No. 3,715,189, 1973).
Sarkie Nighohossian and John J. Tobin, Jr., inventors of this device,
hoped to create a reliable and viable apparatus that could be used in
the field by law enforcement officers to test for marijuana.
The Duquenois-Levine color test has been used in crime laboratories
for presumptive testing on marijuana since the 1970s with over 90%
of crime laboratories still using the same reagent and method today
(O’Neal, Crouch, & Fatah, 2000, p. 190). The field test kits are
comprised of a small portable pouch with a pre-measured amount of
the Duquenois-Levine reagent. Each marijuana field test kit contains
three separate ampoules within a single pouch (See Figure 1). The
police officer is able to test for suspected marijuana in the field, using
the same validated color test that forensic crime laboratories use for
the presumptive testing of marijuana.

Forensic crime laboratories are comprised of various departments
specializing in the examination of specific types of evidence. The
chemistry section is often called the controlled substances or drug
section and routinely processes the largest number of cases and items
submitted to the laboratory (Dale & Becker, 2007, p. 110). Marijuana evidence sent to the crime laboratory is examined using three
different techniques. These include: morphological examination,
chemical evaluation, and instrumental analysis. The morphological
examination uses microscopy to identify characteristic plant features.
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