News

One chapter of the new text "Forensic Medicine" is on Cannabinoids.  The chapter is a very comprehensive review of current literature on marijuana and other cannabinoids.  The book is open source, so the chapter is here.  The entire book may be viewed and downloaded here.

Concern is high regarding the new aerosol delivery method for caffeine by Aeroshot.  See ad here.

 Photo of aerosol caffeine dispenser - Aeroshot.

Several near deaths occured in Washington in 2011 when students drank the caffeine/alcohol combination in a "Four Locos" drink.  The interaction between large doses of caffeine and alcohol is not a well researched area--but it has proved a very dangerous combination for youth.   The new product poses dangers similar to that in Four Locos.  Without the bother of drinking a beverage slowly, the user can get the equivelent of six cups of coffee within a few minutes from a single Aeroshot for about $2.99 at the local gas station. 

U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer of New York wants the FDA to review AeroShot, saying he fears it will be used as a club drug that young people will take to allow them to drink until they drop.

CBS Article

ICADTS, the International Council on Alcohol, Drugs and Traffic Safety, provides a view on how other countries address various aspects of impaired driving. 

Of particular interest in this issue is the current per se limit for the European Union--now adopted in Ireland.   BAC levels have dropped from 0.08 BAC to 0.05 in Ireland (consistent with the remaining EU except GB).   Also, learners and commercial drivers are at 0.02 BAC.   Drivers who cannot present a valid permit are also subject to the lower 0.02 BAC level. 

See the full newsletter: ICADTS_23_1_Winter_2012.pdf

The Role and Impact of Forensic Evidence in the Criminal Justice System

Tom McEwen, PhD

Institute for Law and Justice, Inc.; 2010

Download the report here.  

A new drug on the internet markets is "Zannie."  The drug is delivered with a tongue-in-cheek claim that it is an aersol "air freshener."  In fact, it is designed for internal use.  Ad link is here.

The active ingredient is phenazepam.  This drug is not a controlled substance-so expect it to show up in the usual head shops and corner stores.   Phenazepam's effect is similar to bezodiazepam, except Pheazepam is about 10X as strong.   A typical dose in is the .2 ng range.  Most user's scales are unable to quantify at this level, so users often just guess on dosage.  Overdose is a big concern with this drug.

The drug has a very long potency, although its hard to determine how long because a major effect of the drug is amnesia.  (Which is why OD is a concern).  One user admits he burned through 200 ng over several days because he continued to use while he was high--but cannot remember much after his second dosing.  He does remember destroying various personal items, including his laptop.  The link to the comment is here. 

The January 2012 Newsletter is attached HERE:

A new party drug is out in force at clubs and parties.  The chemical name of the drug is Benzofura or 6 APB.  The drug is being heavily marketed on the internet with claims "Stock Up Now--before its banned!".   A minute by minute review of its effects can be seen at the link here.  A Scottish newspaper provides an overview of the drug's growing influence in Europe here. 

One of the differences between this drug and others is its relatively long inactive period before any effects are percieved by the user.  In the user account above--it was a full 90 minutes before a single pill kicked in full force.   This may lead unfamiliar users to double-dose and overdose.   

In those instances where the subject is not overcome by the drug, the effect is descibed as a combination of the effects of Ecstacy and Mephedrone.  In the initial phase, the subject feels much like they are drunk, this progresses to a strong feeling of euphoria (lasting from 1-3 hours) typified by strong sypathetic feeling for other people ("I love you!") and a need to be around other people.  The subjects also got physically very hot, needed lots of water, complained of difficulty seeing (dilated pupils?), time distortion, inability to focus, and black-outs.   Beyond the euphoria period--physical effects lasted a full 12 hours.

Watch out for this one folks--it's bound to show up in your SFSTs soon! 

The executive summary of the new TIRF report on Female Fatal Drivers is out.  The information includes many well known facts--but a surprisingly large number of lesser known facts about female impaired drivers--including the fact thier numbers are growing.  A copy of the summary is here: executive_summary_state_of_knowledge_female_impaired_drivers_9.pdf

  The link to the full report is here.

A really vicious heroin substitute is now circulating.  The drug is made from codeine-so expect it to show up where codeine is readily available over-the-counter (Canada, Mexico, etc.).   The drug is about 4x more addictive than Heroin and virtually impossible to stop using once addicted.  Life expectancy for an addict is about 1 year. 

A short introduction to a cheap powerful Heroin replacement drug is attached Here

A graphic YouTube video of its physical effects is attached here. 

A very good overview of how we are doing nationally in fatal crashes.  The full report is here:

2010 Motor Vehicle Crashes-Overview.pdf