This report presents an overview of the technology “landscape” for tools that advance justice in the law enforcement investigation of cases that involve driving under the influence of drugs (DUID).
The report is largely based on information obtained from law enforcement personnel, prosecutors, and product developers. In addition, the report draws from the findings and recommendations of the Criminal justice Requirements and Resources Consortium, which discussed technology-based solutions for DUID investigations. The Consortium’s focus was on field-portable DUID technologies that may facilitate consistency for officers in field observation, documentation, and testimony involved in DUID cases. In turn, this assists prosecutors in building DUID cases with more reliable and comprehensive evidence. The current report complements a related landscape study on physical and cognitive screening products that assess impairment and detect the presence of drugs in oral fluid, breath, or sweat. In combination, these reports provide law enforcement agencies with emerging and currently available products and services with potential applications for DUID cases. Compared to the previous report, the current report provides a higher level of technology-based perspective of hardware and software that might benefit DUID investigations. Although technologies relevant to DUID cases will continue to evolve, the technologies profiled in this report will likely remain relevant for some time. Technology advances reflected in this report pertain to 5G wireless communication, mobile hardware, and Cloud computing. These advances in broadband connectivity, hardware, and artificial intelligence (AI) can increase successful DUID outcomes. Real-time communication and immersive learning products and services can support observation, documentation, and training applicable to DUID. The report notes most of the digital products or services described have not been developed or evaluated specifically for law enforcement or DUID, which requires them to be researched, developed, and evaluated for their performance in the context of DUID investigations. 16 figures