Designer drugs are a growing challenge for treatment courts. Legal barriers intended to slow the advance of these chemicals are constantly developing and changing to keep pace with the creativity of chemists operating illicitly and with the rapidly evolving landscape of designer drugs. Drug-testing laboratories struggle to keep detection capabilities current with new designer formulas. Further complicating the role of the treatment court is the quasi-legal status of some of the new designer drugs, which a myriad of e-commerce sites offer as “legal.” All of these factors combine to create a complex moving target that can be challenging for treatment courts. This fact sheet provides basic information on the rapidly evolving class of psychoactive substances known as designer drugs to assist treatment courts with developing abstinence-monitoring strategies.

Author:

Paul L. Cary, M.S.
Forensic Toxicologist

Date: 2014