Technology Takes on Drug Smugglers: Can Drug Detection Technology Stop Drugs From Entering Prisons?

• NCJ Number: 189647
• Journal: Corrections Today Volume: 63 Issue: 4 Dated: July 2001 Pages: 66-69
• Author(s): Stacy Wright; Robert F. Butler
• Date Published: July 2001
• Length: 4 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Test/Measurement
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This article reports on available drug-detection technologies and the test design for determining their usefulness for improving prison mailroom drug screening.

Abstract

Using drug trace detectors, inspectors can determine whether items have been in the presence of drugs, e.g., touched by people who have been using, handling, or hiding drugs. Most trace detection systems in use today are based on ion mobility spectrometry. Trace detectors operate in two basic modes: vapor detection and particle detection. Inspectors use convenient handheld "sniffers" for detecting drug vapors; however, drug vapors are not always present, and particle detection is more likely to be successful. In the particle-detection mode, the inspector vacuums or swipes the surface of an item of interest. He/she then inserts the collection filter from the vacuum or swipe into the detector's intake device, so that the collected particles can be extracted, analyzed, and identified. If target drugs are present, the detector alerts the inspector and provides an identification of the substance. Another available trace detection technology is one that uses a "wipe and spray" method to detect drug residue. A suspected item is wiped with specially treated paper and then sprayed with an aerosol can. The paper's color change indicates the presence of drug residue. Some of the trace detection systems have been tested in the laboratory and some have not. None have been evaluated for the mailroom detection tasks identified for prisons. This article includes a description of the evaluation to be conducted at the mailroom of the U.S. Penitentiary in Leavenworth, Kansas. This will involve observing, documenting, and analyzing the processes undertaken by mailroom staff on a typical day and the use of a mailroom scenario for the technical evaluation of the various drug-detection technologies. At the end of testing, a team will compare and analyze the data from the concealment and detection operations to determine the performance of the tested system. 2 references