Embedded Files
Page 8
characterize the use and efficacy of electronic cigarettes to deliver pharmaceutical products. E-cigarettes were functionally described, methods were developed to analyze the pharmaceutical products (e-liquids and aerosol), truth in advertising was described for commercially available products, adulterations to the products were assessed, and potential biomarkers were evaluated. Implications for Criminal Justice Policy and Practice What is the impact of the project on the criminal justice system? Significant efforts have been made to educate law enforcement, medical examiners, toxicologists, and crime lab practitioners about drug use and abuse employing e-cigarettes. Public awareness has increased as to the potential dangers, and crime scene investigators and death investigators have 4 This resource was prepared by the author(s) using Federal funds provided by the U.S. Department of Justice. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice. reported collecting these and sending them to crime labs. Ultimately, this study has provided greater understanding in the court systems nationwide as to the nature of drug usage, abuse, and overdose cases in which e-cigarettes were used to deliver an illicit drug. We believe that the impact to the criminal justice system is slowly unfolding. However, the research group has been asked to speak at national and international conferences to continue to educate scientists and crime scene investigators as to the potential impact of using e-cigarettes illicitly. Dr. Peace, the PI, has been invited to numerous conferences to present our findings, and will be providing information directly to the DEA who now has significant interest in the adoption of e-cigarettes. Additionally, the research group has been interviewed for news outlets such as New Scientist and NPR’s With Good Reason. This kind of broader exposure will benefit the criminal justice system from an immediate general awareness perspective to, hopefully, programmatic/systemic changes. How has it contributed to crime laboratories? Given that one role of the forensic toxicologist is to define and characterize drug usage trends, this publicly funded research posed an important, relevant, and critically timed study to address an identified threat to public health and criminal justice. This research supported the analytical efforts in controlled substances units and will support the findings and opinions of scientists, medical examiners, death investigators, and forensic toxicologists as they present analytical results. As of April 24, 2017, the research group has been consulted on seven e-cigarette cases. One case involved a professional athlete who submitted to a urine drug test and tested positive for a banned substance. He reported that he vaped from someone else’s e-cigarettes, that contained an e-liquid purchased from a retail shop that was not labeled as having contained that substance. The laboratory who conducted the testing called to inquire about the feasibility of this claim. Based on our analyses of dozens of samples of e-liquids purchased from multiple vendors, the story was plausible. Three cases involved samples submitted through emergency room departments. One sample was determined to contain apomorphine and nuciferine, found in blue lotus flowers. Two cases involved potential overdose deaths. In the first, witnesses claimed that the victim vaped from an e-cigarette and died shortly thereafter. Analysis of the e-cigarette and e-liquid revealed no drug besides nicotine. One case involved a family-based litigation case in which someone claimed to be “just vaping” while illicit substances were found in the e-cigarette. And lastly, a “smoke easy” raid was conducted in a Philadelphia warehouse in which 22 people were arrested for marijuana possession and distribution. According to an analyst in the crime laboratory, the evidence collected included dozens of cartridges presumably containing cannabinoids. The analyst had attended the two webinars produced by the Center of Excellence on our research, and, as a result, was assigned the e-cigarette evidence. The research group will collaborate with that crime laboratory to analyze the products seized. What is the impact on technology transfer? In addition to providing critical information at an important time in the emergence of these products, the study has supported the efforts to understand the e-cigarette industry by regulatory agencies such as the FDA. Given that most of the knowledge of “puff topography”, or the volume of cloud, duration of the inhale, and the concentration of drug in the cloud, is promulgated by users, this research has contributed to the scientific foundation for electronic e-cigarette usage. Recently, the research group
Google Sites
Report abuse