North Carolina attorney general seeks funds to create fetanyl, cold case unitsRead More
Drug Analysis
Spring 2024 Cannabis Update (Part II)
This update was originally posted on Apr. 10, 2024 on North Carolina Criminal Law, a UNC School of Government Blog available here. In Part I of my Spring 2024 cannabis update, I discussed the search and seizure issues arising in North Carolina courts around cannabis. Part II explores drug identification evidence issues surrounding marijuana prosecutions and examines …
Spring 2024 Cannabis Update (Part I)
This update was originally posted on Apr. 8, 2024 on North Carolina Criminal Law, a UNC School of Government Blog available here. It has been a while since my last post on cannabis and criminal law issues, and it is past time for an update. In addition to a number of state cases grappling with …
What’s Known and Unknown about Marijuana
Two podcast episodes describing how suspected marijuana is tested by forensic labs.
Guilty Until Proven Innocent: Field Drug Tests and Wrongful Convictions
This report by the Penn Carey Law Quattrone Center provides the first-ever comprehensive analysis of presumptive drug field test usage across law enforcement agencies in the United States. Inexpensive and fast, these tests have become a tool of choice for law enforcement agencies. Unfortunately, they are notoriously imprecise and are known to produce “false positives,” …
Guilty Until Proven Innocent: Field Drug Tests and Wrongful ConvictionsRead More
Study Estimates Roadside Drug Tests Result in 30,000 Wrongful Arrests Every Year
Even After Legalization, Maryland Cops Wanted to Search People Based on the Odor of Pot. Legislators Said No.
Roadside Drug Tests Used to Convict People Aren’t Particularly Accurate. Courts Are Beginning to Prevent Their Use.
Renovation at State Crime Lab in Raleigh expected to bring courts more efficient results
Don’t Plead to Weed Webinar
Free webinar offered by Emancipate NC
Animal Tranquilizer Floods Illicit Drug Markets in Maryland
Possession of Khat
Originally posted on North Carolina Criminal Law – A UNC School of Government Blog Readers may have heard of the plant commonly known as khat or qat (or Catha edulis, for the botanically inclined). The plant is indigenous to Africa and is popular in parts of that continent, as well as parts of the Middle East, and is …
<a href="https://nccriminallaw.sog.unc.edu/possession-of-khat/">Possession of Khat</a>Read More
Annie Dookhan took the blame for the state drug lab scandal, but she wasn’t the ‘sole bad actor,’ new documents show
The Effect of Legal Hemp on Drug Dog Sniffs
Jeff Welty posted a 2-part series on the effect of legal hemp on drug dog sniffs on the SOG’s blog, North Carolina Criminal Law. They are linked here: Part 1 Part 2