Types of Drugs

Opiates are a group of drugs that are considered painkillers.  These drugs work on the central nervous system.  This type of drugs would include drugs such as opium or one of its derivatives including morphine and heroin.  Heroin is preferred over morphine partially because it is easier to prepare for use and the effects are felt quicker.  Consequently, the affects are greater, but they do not last as long.  This contributes to the development of an urge for more frequent use.  Almost two-thirds of the composition of a bag of heroin is often unknown to the user.  (Safferstein, 2011, pp. 193-194)

Synthetic opiates are another category of depressants, but are not necessarily derivatives of opium; however, they have similar effects so they are commonly referred to as opiates.  One of the drugs in this category would be OxyContin.  This drug is mainly used for treating symptoms of chronic pain.  Another drug within this category is methadone.  This drug is widely used to treat individuals with addictions to other drugs.  When this drug is in a person’s system, they do not feel the effects of other drugs, so methadone is meant to suppress the urge to use other drugs.  Unfortunately, this drug seems to induce as many harmful effects to the individual as the drug it is intended to treat the individual for.  (Safferstein, 2011, pp. 193-194)

Hallucinogens such as marijuana are also a drug that is included in this category.  A hallucinogen is a drug that alters your mood, attitude and/or your perception.  Marijuana is usually prepared for use on the street by combining, in various proportions, the parts of the entire plant.  The mixture is then dried and smoked.

            A popular extraction from the plant is hashish, which is a resin that the plant contains.  This extraction is also smoked.  Although there are no known harmful effects from this drug, continued and frequent use develops a psychological dependency on the drug.  The tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) content of the plant determines the plant’s potency.  THC is also where marijuana obtains its hallucinogenic properties.  Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) is another drug that is classified in this category, as well as phencyclidine (PCP) and methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) or (Ecstasy).  (Safferstein, 2011, pp. 195-198)

Depressants are another category of drugs. Alcohol is a depressant; there is a substantial amount of alcohol sold annually.  Alcohol brings in revenue in the neighborhood of eleven figures annually.  The effect alcohol has on a person’s body is hard to predict because it depends on a large number of variables.  For example, some of these variable are; if the person ate before consuming the alcohol, how much alcohol was consumed, body weight of the individual, and the individual’s metabolism to name a few.  (Safferstein, 2011, pp. 198-199)

Barbiturates are another form of depressants.  They act like alcohol in many ways and prolonged use may produce physical dependencies.

Another form of depressants is anti-psychotics and anti-anxiety drugs. These depressants normally do not induce sleep or diminish mental capacity when taken in moderate doses.  These include Librium, valium and xanax, among others.  (Safferstein, 2011, pp. 198-199)

People will do almost anything to get a high.  This would include sniffing solvents.  Some compounds, which contain volatile chemicals, will give a person a high when they inhale the fumes that are produced by the compound.  This process is what is known as huffing, which involves compounds such as airplane glue or those similar to this.

 

Stimulants are drugs that induce the opposite effects that are produced by depressants.  (Safferstein, 2011, pp. 198-199)

Amphetamines are included in this group. The main appeal of these synthetic drugs is the rush that they provide, especially when taken intravenously.  This is especially true with the chemical derivative methamphetamine.  Cocaine is another stimulant, apparently in high demand, that induces similar effects.  (Safferstein, 2011, pp. 198-199)

A very large percentage of the aforementioned drugs induce a high psychological dependency.  The drugs include morphine, heroin, methadone, short-acting barbiturates, alcohol, Quaaludes, amphetamines, cocaine, nicotine and PCP.  (Safferstein, 2011, p. 192)

There are also a large percentage of these drugs that cause physical dependencies.  About the only ones that are excluded from this category are cocaine, caffeine, marijuana, LSD, and PCP.  (Safferstein, 2011, p. 192)

As far as testing a substance to establish its identification, the first process is exclusion.  The substance is tested for a variety of known substances to exclude certain drugs for further consideration.  (Safferstein, 2011, p. 204)

Once the first step is complete, if the substance has not yet been identified, then we move on to the next step. The first step should narrow the possibilities to a point which minimizes the possibilities to facilitate ease of step two.  The next step is called the confirmation step.  This step must narrow the possibilities to a point that the chances of another substance reacting positive to the same series of tests is so remote as to prove certainty of the identification of the substance.  (Safferstein, 2011, p. 205)

21 August 2012 

References

Safferstein, R. (2011). Criminalistics: An Introduction to Forensic Science (Tenth ed.). Upper Saddle River

, NJ: Pearson Education.