NCJ Number
197823
Journal
Journal of Forensic Identification Volume: 52 Issue: 6 Dated: November/December 2002 Pages: 704-724
Editor(s)
Alan L. McRoberts
Date Published
November 2002
Length
21 pages
Annotation
This paper analyzes the utilization of police canines in conducting sniff tests on currency contaminated by drugs, such as cocaine, creating a nexus between confiscated currency and drugs and the establishment of a universal sniff test protocol.
Abstract
With a canine’s ability to distinguish one scent from another, canines have become a valuable tool in law enforcement in detecting drugs and explosives. This paper examines the law enforcement canine’s role in creating a nexus between confiscated currency and drugs, as well as the roles that the canine handler and evidence collector play in the collection of currency and in maintaining a chain of evidence. The training process known as “proofing” is discussed where the canine is exposed to uncontaminated currency during drug searches. In addition, the roles of the money officer, control officer, and the canine handler are presented and described. Linking large amounts of suspect currency back to an illegal transaction is often difficult. One way to show the required nexus is through the use of trained dogs that are able to detect the odor of drugs on paper currency. Canines are an integral part of money sniff tests that law enforcement agencies use to seize, under forfeiture laws, monies used in conjunction with drugs and drug dealing. However, strict protocols must be established, observed, and maintained in order to demonstrate a crime-drug money nexus in the courts. Appendices A-B and references