NCJ Number
210397
Journal
Journal of Criminal Justice Volume: 33 Issue: 3 Dated: May/June 2005 Pages: 289-297
Date Published
May 2005
Length
9 pages
Annotation
This article explores the issues involved with workplace drug testing and presents one police agency’s experience with randomized drug testing of its sworn officers.
Abstract
The use of workplace drug testing to detect illicit drug use among employees is an increasing phenomenon and has become nearly universal in the policing industry. Despite its widespread use among police departments, relatively little is known about the results of police randomized drug testing. The current article reports on one department’s experience with randomized drug testing of its sworn officers and presents information on the rate of positive tests, the characteristics of officers who test positive, and the drug of choice among police officers who have tested positive. The problems related to the use of drug testing the law enforcement population are reviewed, including the legal considerations of testing currently employed officers. The randomized drug testing policy and procedures of one large police agency in the Eastern United States are enumerated and the results of its drug screens are presented. Data indicate that race was a significant predictor of test results, with 0.24 percent of Caucasian officers testing positive compared to 0.79 percent of African-American officers. The drug of choice among police officers was cocaine, with over 80 percent of officers testing positive for only cocaine, compared to 17 percent testing positive for only marijuana. Recommendations are offered for drug testing policies designed to discourage drug-related corruption among police officers and discourage drug use, as well as other acts of misconduct. Tables, references