NCJ Number
163278
Date Published
September 1996
Length
65 pages
Annotation
The Counterdrug Technology Assessment Center (CTAC), the Federal Government's central counterdrug enforcement research and development organization, presents its fourth periodic report (dated September 1996) on the status of the national counterdrug research and development program.
Abstract
CTAC's mission is to advance technologies that support the National Drug Control Strategy. CTAC prepares periodic reports to Congress entitled "Blueprints," in order to provide updates on the national counterdrug research and development program. This report describes some of the most successful CTAC projects of the past year. Some of the 11 research projects described include the completion of a gamma-ray system for inspecting cargo vehicles and containers, progress in the development of cocaine antibodies that can provide immunization against the addictive effects of cocaine for up to 1 year, opening of the only state-of-the-art positron emission tomography facility dedicated to drug addiction research, and the development of an investigative which uses a personal computer to automatically analyze patterns of known traffickers' cellular phone and paging partners and other members of drug trafficking organizations. For fiscal year 1997, technology development efforts will continue in the areas of nonintrusive cargo inspection, drug abuse treatment, the disruption of drug traffickers, infrastructure support, and outreach (International Counterdrug Technology Symposium, July 1997). Appendixes provide highlights from legislation, a list of all counterdrug research and development projects by agency for fiscal years 1994 and 1995, summaries of ongoing Department of Defense counterdrug technology projects, a summary of CTAC's Outreach Program, the U.S. Customs Service Development and Acquisition Plan for Border Port Inspection Technology, and a list of relevant articles and publications.