California police has begun testing device designed for the detection of drugs in saliva. Presentation «marketecture» was held Wednesday in Sacramento.
The device is able to detect six kinds of drugs, including marijuana, it is designed to help in the fight against drunk driving. Device consists of swab to collect saliva and portable detector that 5 minutes defines, whether the person used drugs.
Such testers are already using in some countries, and recently they were legalized in Vermont and Michigan.
Described devices is not the only of its kind. Last fall, a group of scientists from Stanford University have invented a so-called «totalizer» is a mobile device designed to detect molecules of tetrahydrocannabinol. «Totaliser» for 3 minutes determines the presence and concentration of a substance in the saliva of the subject and sends the information to a smartphone or laptop.
Currently, California law enforcement authorities carefully think through the steps to identify drunken motorists, predicting a sharp increase next year when the legalization of marijuana will fully enter into force.
However, talking about the extensive use of drug testing in police practice does not go, because it is complicated by a number of nuances, including legal. First, under current California law, the detained motorists the right to refuse delivery drug test. Second, the state does not exist clear rules of acceptable content psyhotropic substances in the body of the driver. These gaps in the law leave a number of open issues regarding road safety.
