NCJ Number
91474
Date Published
1981
Length
94 pages
Annotation
This chapter describes the role of the forensic toxicologist in the criminal justice system and details drug analysis techniques of the profession.
Abstract
General issues raised in the discussion include scene investigation and the preservation of evidence, analysis of materials and interpretation of findings, and the forensic toxicologist as an expert witness. Following an overview of the methods of toxicological analysis, specifics are delineated for various drugs: ethyl alcohol, marijuana, heroin and morphine compounds, sedative-hypnotic drugs, LSD and other hallucinogens, and cocaine. Each drug is dealt with in terms of history and description, pharmacological action, toxicity, and methods of detection. The concluding discussion concerns drug and chemical blood levels, the utility of such data and factors affecting blood level values. Tabular data and extensive footnotes are provided.