NCJ Number
202766
Journal
Police Chief Volume: 70 Issue: 10 Dated: October 2003 Pages: 103-106
Date Published
October 2003
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This article discusses the Drug Recognition Expert (DRE) program and how its uses have been expanded.
Abstract
The DRE program began in the 1970's and quickly evolved into one of the most successful international programs aimed at deterring drug-impaired driving. As of March 2003, 36 States and several countries, including Canada, were involved in the program, and interest is growing in many other States and countries. The drug recognition expert’s main focus is the detection and recognition of drug-impaired drivers. DRE's have used and continue to use their specialized training and skills to assist in many other areas of public safety. Police officers trained as DRE's have shown that their drug recognition skills and training help them accurately identify persons impaired by drugs and alcohol. In Oregon, drug-impaired-driving arrests increased by 150 percent in the first 5 years of entering the DRE program; during the same period, drug- and alcohol-related traffic deaths declined. In an effort to enhance the working partnerships between DRE's and local, State, and Federal drug investigators, the Oregon High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) office sponsored and funded an Oregon DRE school in 2002. DRE's trained in this school routinely furnish drug evaluation reports to their local drug teams for follow-up investigations. In the State of Washington, DREs help combat criminal behavior on State and interstate highways while assigned to the Washington State Patrol’s Serious Highway Crime Action Team (SHCAT). DRE's also work in partnership with Department of Transportation commercial vehicle inspectors in Operation Trucker Check projects. DRE's throughout the country are also working closely with their local schools and school districts to deter drug use and abuse in the schools. They are training school administrators, teachers, and nurses to identify drug abuse and impairment through the Drug Impairment Training for Educational Professionals (DITEP) program. The scope of the DRE and the Drug Evaluation Classification programs has expanded greatly since its inception in the 1970's.