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Crime Laboratories 1988: A Key Program of State Drug Control Strategies

NCJ Number
124329
Author(s)
J R Coldren Jr; K R Coyle; S D Carr
Date Published
1990
Length
50 pages
Annotation
Information from 66 crime laboratories in 14 states formed the basis of an analysis of the laboratory types, sizes, personnel composition, expenditures, types of law enforcement agencies submitting suspected controlled drugs for analysis, types of drugs identified, and average time for completion of analysis.
Abstract
Data came from Arizona, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Indiana, Michigan, Montana, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and Washington. Many of the states received formula grant funds from the Bureau of Justice Assistance for drug enforcement programs under the Anti-Drug Abuse Acts of 1986 and 1988. Findings showed that the laboratories analyzed 343,798 suspected control substances in 1988. Forty percent of the substances identified were marijuana, and 33 percent were cocaine. The average time for completion of analysis ranged from 1 to 99.9 days, with more than half of the laboratories averaging 2 weeks or less. The laboratories spend $17.1 million in 1988, including $2.5 million for equipment. Fifty-four percent of the requests for analyses of suspected controlled substances came from municipal law enforcement agencies; 21 percent came from State agencies. Figures, tables, footnotes, and appended background information, additional tables, and 6 references.