Nebraska DRE Newsletter

"The Nebraska DRE"

News for Drug Recognition Experts

Volume 9-98 September, 1998

Increased Methamphetamine Use

Recently released information from the arrestee drug abuse monitoring program, or ADAM, indicates that 10 percent of all individuals arrested and jailed in Omaha last year tested positive for methamphetamine. For the two preceding years the rate of meth use among criminal defendants was approximately eight percent. Of the cities that took part in the survey, Omaha ranked as the fifth highest for use of the drug among incarcerated persons in 1997.

Meth Use
of Adult Arrests

San Diego, California - 40 percent

San Jose, California - 18 percent

Phoenix, Arizona - 16 percent

Portland, Oregon - 16 percent

Omaha, Nebraska - 10 percent

ADAM is part of a federal study started in 1990. The National Institute conducts it in 23 selected cities. Every three months approximately 255 defendants, being held in the Omaha City jail, provide voluntary urine samples. In addition to the chemical test the subjects take part in a standardized interview. The 10 percent use rate of methamphetamine is the highest on record for the city.

The monitoring program also shows that about 60 percent of Omaha prisoners are testing positive for drugs other than alcohol. In 1997 about 40 percent of defendants tested positive for marijuana and around 20 percent for cocaine.

Based upon conversations with Drug Recognition Experts, and other authorities in our state, there are several reasons to believe that meth use is even more prevalent in western Nebraska.

With the amplification in methamphetamine use law enforcement officers are facing an ever-increasing challenge of dealing with criminals who are under the influence of the dangerous substance. This Central Nervous System Stimulant can create a radically hyper, paranoid suspect who has extreme difficulty understanding an officers requests.

Cities in the ADAM Study

Atlanta, Birmingham, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Ft. Lauderdale, New Orleans, Houston, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, Manhattan, Miami, Omaha, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Portland, St. Louis, San Antonio, San Diego, San Jose, Washington D.C.

Preparing a DRE Court Case
(Continued from the August Newsletter)

The following advice was copied from an informational handout provided at the National DRE Conference, conducted in Portland, Oregon. The breakout session was entitled "What's New in DRE/HGN Court Cases". Patricia Gould of the National Traffic Law Center moderated the discussion. The panel included Mary Anderson, Deschutes OR District Attorney, Barbara Bailey, City Attorney Tacoma WA, Karen Herland, Minneapolis City Attorney, and local Defense Attorney John Henry Hingson.

In the July and August edition of The Nebraska DRE the subjects of report writing, courtroom testimony and practical tips were covered. This issue will continue with points for case preparation.

DRE Checklist for Motions and Trial

For the DRE: You may need the following:

Certification from the State DRE program
Certification from IACP
Up to date rolling log
HGN log
Police reports, including drug influence evaluation form
BAC card
Intoxilyzer certification card
Matrix
Drug evaluation checklist
Up to date resume
DRE kit (including pupillometer)
State standards for DRE program
All other evidence related to the case (drugs, paraphernalia, etc.)

For the prosecutor: What you may need for motion trial:

John Hopkins study
NHTSA field evaluation study
DRE training manuals: Pre-school, DRE school, Instructors
Current list from IACP of all States and Countries participating in the DRE program
List of seven drug categories
Drug matrix
Drug evaluation checklist
Resumes of DREs testifying
IACP DRE national standards
State DRE standards
Arizona validation study
DRE certifications, state and IACP
Vision and driving study
Rolling logs of DREs testifying
HGN logs of officers testifying
Video training tape of eye movements
Lab request sheets
Lab results
BAC cards
Rapid eye test article
Arizona performance assessment
Arizona comparison study
SFST validation study
Pupillometer
Journal of analytical toxicology
DWI Detection Manual
JAMA article: Alcohol and the Driver
JAMA consensus report
State overviews and studies
National Traffic Law Center case law summary
Any state court written DRE opinions

NOTE: This list is not exclusive. Talk to your witnesses in advance about other articles or material they may be relying on. You may not need all of these items, but you should be familiar with them and know of their existence. In addition you must be prepared to deal with the defendant's "expert material". Focus on the points raised in the motion and determine what evidence you will need to refute the points raised. If you have questions about the studies or articles and how to locate them, call your DRE, the State Coordinator or the National Traffic Law Center. Below is a list of some of the current literature being used by the defense.

Defense Articles and Material

Drinking and Driving Law Letter article by Phillip B. Price (September 1996)
DRE "Police Science": An Oxymoron, Case Law Summary and Suggested Points of Attack, John Henry Hingson
"Out of the Blue", 82 ABAJ 50 (February 1996)
"I May Flunk but I Ain't Drunk", Spurgeon Cole and Ronald Nowaczyk, Clemson University, Presented at the 1993 NACDL Conference
"Field Sobriety Test: Are They Designed for Failure?", Perceptual and Motor Skills, 1994, 79, 99-104
The Champion, August 1995, "The .10% Solution"
The DRE Miami in Possible Lines of Questioning Worksheet (this is not a published article, rather a worksheet for the defense bar that has made its way across the states)

Our sincere thanks are extended to the individuals, previously mentioned, who provided all DRE's with this important information.

Nebraska DRE Class of 1-98

Lincoln Nebraska will be the site for the next Drug Evaluation and Classification Program School. The Pre-school will be held October 14 and 15. The DRE School will be conducted October 21-23 and 26-29, 1998.

Lieutenant Darrell Fisher of the Nebraska State Patrol will act as the Course Administrator.

The following DRE instructors will teach the class room portion of this years School.

Mark Van Horn Nebraska State Patrol
Lance Mooney Nebraska State Patrol
John McGahan Lincoln Police Department
Chuck Matson Omaha Police Department
Greg Cody Lincoln Police Department
Dave Carlson Omaha Police Department
Dave Anderson Nebraska Law Enforcement Training Center

The remainder of the state's DRE instructors will be assisting with evaluation nights, which will be conducted every non-holiday weekend for the remainder of the year.

Law Enforcement Officers from Nine Agencies attend SFST Class

The Omaha Police Training Academy hosted a DWI Detection and Standardized Field Sobriety Testing class September 10-12,1998. Agencies represented included Deputies from the Douglas and Platt County Sheriff's Departments. In addition to Omaha officers, other Police Departments represented included Bellevue, Blair, Columbus, Grand Island and Kimball.

Thank you to instructor's Dave Carlson, Vince Salerno and Laurie Scoot as well as monitors Bob Vondrasek and Len Szmurlo for their help.