Drugs Flashcards
What is a drug?
any substance that produces significant physiological or psychological changes which occur within a reasonable time after dosing and which result from an easily ingested dose
Drugs are used to:
- sustain and prolong life
- ease and manage pain, symptoms
- release stress and pressure
- experiment recreationally
- end’s someone’s life
Common drugs
- alcohol
- tobacco/nicotine
- cocaine/ crack
- marijuana
- heroin
- ecstasy
- bath salts
Drugs used in the 1960’s
Hallucinogens, amphetamines, barbiturates
marijuana most widely abused illicit drug in the US
Drugs used in the 1970’s
heroin use and addiction becomes national problem in the US
Drugs used in the 1980’s/90’s
Cocaine/crack are drugs of choice
What is drug dependance?
An individual will demonstrate drug dependence when he/she becomes physically ill or psychologically disoriented when drug use is discontinued
What is the most abused drug in the Western world?
Alcohol
Physiological (Physical) Dependence
Occurs when someone takes a substance in increasing dosages because the body requires MORE of the substance for the same, not increased, effect
Psychological Dependence
Occurs when the desire for a substance overtakes he rest of a person’s life
Six (6) basic categories of drugs
- Narcotic drugs
- Stimulants
- Hallucinogens
- Depressants, Hypnotics, and tranquilizers
- Club Drugs
- Performance enhancing drugs
Narcotics
Substances that bring relief from pain and produce sleep
- also referred to as Analgesics
- Used as pain killers legally
- Used for euphoric purposes illegally
- Regular use will result in physiological dependence
- Sometimes used to describe any illicit substance
Opium
dried sap from a poppy plant
Morphine
largest single drug component in opium
Heroin: morphine + acetate groups
Codeine
second largest drug component in opium
- Not as effective/addictive as morphine
- Chemically structurally similar to morphine
OxyContin
synthetically produced but closely related to morphine and heroin
Heroin
- usually found in glassine envelopes
- not 100% pure (fillers include novocain, starch, levamisole, flour, etc)
- Will have stamp on outside for marketing purposes
- Cutting agents (levamisole, fentanyl)
Fentanyl
50-100% more potent than morphine
30-50% more potent than heroin
Stimulants
- Used to increase an individual’s mental and physical energy level
- Stimulate the central nervous system
- Will suppress the desire to sleep
- Will give a higher than normal energy level leading to a crash
Cocaine:
Hydrochloride v. Base
Hydrochloride: powder, snorted
Base: crack, freebase, smoked
Cocaine
Extracted from Erythroxylon coca plant leaves
Common use in the 1800s
Sigmund Freud, common pain relief in field workers
Amphetamine
- Stimulates the CNS
- Creates the feeling of euphoria with hyperactivity
- Quick rush followed by intense feelings of pleasure
- Hallucinations are possible
- Exhaustion and depression follow
Methamphetamine
- Was originally used to treat narcolepsy and other conditions
- Became widely abused
- Had limited medical uses
- No longer commercially produced
- “Clandestine Labs”
- Not as potent as cocaine, but effects last longer
- Smoked or inhaled
- results in violent and destructive behavior
- can cause acute psychosis
Hallucinogens
- Used to significantly affect a user’s mental state
Drugs that cause hallucinations
Marijuana PCP LSD Mushrooms MDA/MDMA (Ecstasy) Bath Salts
Marijuana
Cannabis sativa
- resin contains connabionoids with hallucinogenic properties
- Cannabinol
- Cannabidiol
- Delta 9 Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)
Hashish
Hash oil
Phencyclidine - PCP
- Angel dust
- Made in clandestine laboratories
- Simple chemicals
- Aggression, unpleasant hallucinations
- Used in conjunction with cigarettes, herbs, and marijuana
- Has strong chemical smell
LSD
- Lysergic Acid Diethylamide
- Small doses cause long and unpleasant hallucinations
- Dosage is 30-50 ug = 1000x<does required for other drugs to take effect
- Users may experience hallucinations long after drug has been taken
Mushrooms
- From genus Psilocybe
- Psilocin and Psilocibin are active ingredients
- Spores are not illegal because they do not contain the active ingredients
Bath salts
- “new” to market
- cause psychosis
- stories of people running around naked, extremely aggressive
- Packaged and sold as regular bath salts
Depressants, Hypnotics, and Tranquilizers
- Depress the CNS
- Tranquilizers relieve anxiety (alcohol, valium, rohypnol “roofies”)
Club drugs
groups of drugs associated with raves, clubs, parties, etc.
- Ecstasy
- GHB
- Ketamine: animal tranquilizer
All are used in drug facilitated sexual assaults
Ecstasy
MDMA
- legal until mid 1980’s
- Patented in 1914
- No use until 1950s
- 1970s: Psychotherapists used for traumatized patients
- Recreational use began in 1980s in Texas
- 5/1/1985: DEA announces intent to add MDMA as Schedule I drug
Performance Enhancing Drugs
New concern to law enforcement
Anabolic Steroids
- used for rapid muscle building when used in conjunction with vigorous physical training
- promote cell growth and division which result in the growth of muscle tissue and sometimes bone size and strength
Controlled substance
a drug named in federal or state controlled substance statutes as illegal to possess other than when prescribed by a physician
Title 21 United States Code Controlled Substances Act (CSA)
- Classifies drugs into 5 schedules
- Scheduling is based on currently accepted medical use in the United States and potential for abuse
Schedule I
- high potential for abuse
- no current accepted medical use in the US
- Lack accepted safety for use in medicine
Drugs include:
- heroin
- marijuana
- LSD
- Methaqualone
Schedule II
- High potential for abuse
- Current accepted medical use in the US with severe restrictions
- Potential for severe psychological or physical dependence
Drugs include:
- Opium and its derivatives not listened under Schedule I
- Cocaine
- Methadone
- PCP
- Dronabinol (synthetic THC)
Schedule III
- less potential for abuse vs. I and II
- Currently accepted medical use in US
- Potential for low/moderate physical dependence and high psychological dependence
Drugs include:
- Some codeine preparations
- Barbiturate preparations (except those listed in Schedule II)
- Anabolic steroids
Schedule IV
- Low potential for abuse, less than ill
- current accepted medical use in the US
- Limited dependence potential
Drugs include:
- darvon
- phenobarbitol
- tranquilizers like librium and valium
Schedule V
- low potential for abuse
- current accepted medical use in the US
- less potential for dependence vs. Schedule IV drugs
Drugs include:
- drug mixtures containing nonnarcotic medicinal ingredients, or mixtures that contain a drug from a previous schedule but in a very small amount.
What is the first step in processing a crime scene/evidence?
Recognition
What is the second stop in processing a crime scene/evidence?
Documentation
Packaging depends on the state of the material present:
Loose or packaged:
- collect entire container
- loose material: choose container that will now allow loss of material
Drug analysis begins with:
presumptive/screening tests
Drug Presumptive Tests
- Usually colored tests
- Positive results indicate possible but not certain presence of drugs
- May be done on scene or in lab
