Forensic Toxicology Can Debunk the Poppy Defense

When it comes to detecting substance abuse, urinalysis remains to be the tool of choice by forensic toxicologists. Recent improvements in drug tests may soon accurately separate positive cases of heroin use from false-positive ones, wherein individuals have only ingested poppy seeds and not taken an illegal drug. These false-positive cases have presented problems to authorities because of the possibility that drug users may only be using the “poppy seed defense” to their advantage.

The term relates to how people can test positive for heroin abuse simply by consuming pastries made using poppy seeds. Depending on the quantity of seeds consumed, a person may test positive even up to 60 hours after ingesting the food containing poppy seeds.

While there are some claims that poppy seed ingestion do not make false-positive results in hair tests, forensic specialists have doubts as to its accuracy. This is why urinalysis remains the top choice when it comes to detecting substance use.

Should subsequent studies regarding the use of effective markers for street heroin prove successful, forensic toxicologists will be able to provide an expert opinion regarding a person’s alleged heroin use based on the chemicals found on the urine sample. Such professionals can help a defense or plaintiff attorney with accurate medical assessments regarding the sobriety or condition of the individual in question.

Keys to Choosing an Expert Witness

Criminal cases are won by a single expert testimony, be it by a ballistics specialist, a criminal psychology professional or a toxicologist. Oftentimes, it is the lawyer’s job to secure a witness who can help disprove his client’s involvement in the case. So how exactly does one choose an expert witness?

Choose the Field

Fields of specialization include forensic, environmental, and medical toxicology, internal medicine, and clinical pharmacology. For example, if the case involves poisoning, then you should look for a toxicology expert witness. You can also get in touch with a reputable expert witness referral service for assistance.

Consultant

You will have to hire an expert witness that will act as a consultant to study the case and provide results. A ballistics expert for instance, will inspect bullet wounds and trajectories to find a link between the suspect and the victim. A toxicologist on the other hand, will check for evidence of administered poisons to find out if the victim indeed died or was almost killed by poisoning.

Witness

After the expert has obtained results, the court will convene him to testify (take note that you have the call on how much information the witness can divulge, as long as you’re not burying evidence). You may also need to brief your expert on what questions he might be facing in the course of his examination and cross-examination.

Solving Crime Behind the Scenes

Between NCIS and its spin-off NCIS: Los Angeles, about 39 million people tune in each week to watch special agents solves crimes committed by or against members of the US Navy. Indeed, Americans enjoys their crime procedurals, with no less than seven joining the top 25 most-watched programs of the 2012-2013 TV season. Invariably, it’s the astute detective or the incisive agent that gets top billing in these programs, but a huge part of crime solving actually occurs behind the scenes in medical laboratories.

Indeed, forensics allows law enforcement agencies to crack even the most complicated crimes thanks to meticulous scientific tests. One of the most prominent forensic specialists are forensic toxicologists, experts who examine body fluids and tissue for traces of chemicals that might have contributed to a victim’s untimely demise.

If a defendant is appealing his drunk driving charge, a forensic toxicologist will examine field sobriety results as well as blood alcohol level tests to determine the driver’s culpability. They also help in cases where a victim is suspected to have been poisoned by checking the deceased’s blood and other body fluids for poisonous drugs, chemicals, or metals. Once they finish the investigation, forensic toxicologists can be asked to appear in court as expert witnesses who will explain their findings in layman’s terms to the judge and the jury.

While crime dramas make for engaging television shows, don’t forget that law enforcers can’t solve crimes without the help of forensic toxicology.

How a Medical Expert Witness Can Help Solve Your Lead Poisoning Case

Consulting a reputable toxicology expert witness is necessary to obtaining a professional opinion on causation. Toxicologists have extensive knowledge and experience on the nature and effects of toxins and poisons including chemicals, pharmaceutical products, metals, and alcohol. From testing food products to identifying water quality and determining the safety of cosmetics, they play a huge role in our everyday lives. As professionals, toxicologists can conduct thorough analysis or scientific investigation and present an unbiased report after research for purposes of litigation. They may also give their testimony in court and assist with responses when the need arises. Through this method, the court will be able to determine whether or not the there is negligence on the part of the defendant.

http://www.environmentaldiseases.com/blog/2013/11/14/how-a-medical-expert-witness-can-help-solve-your-lead-poisoning-case/

Voices in Your Head: The Role Hair Can Play in Forensic Toxicology

As efficient as it may be, hair can be quite a challenge in forensic labs, particularly because there are so many factors that affect the success rate of of obtaining a DNA sample. For instance, the chemicals that have been mixed into the hair as a result of dyeing can alter the cuticles, and can even contribute to the degradation of hair DNA. An efficient forensic toxicologist, like one from Environmental Diseases, works with many body samples like hair, skin, blood, and other bodily fluids so as to render an accurate opinion on the diseases, poisons, drug use or other medical conditions. These experts are often called upon by courts to stand as witnesses for criminal cases.

http://www.environmentaldiseases.com/blog/2013/11/13/voices-in-your-head-the-role-hair-can-play-in-forensic-toxicology/

Why You Need a Toxicology Expert Witness

In a nutshell, death investigation uses forensic toxicology to identify the cause of death. In this discipline, toxicologists usually study the concentration of substances ingested by a person and their effect to the body. Blood and hair samples are frequently used to detect the chemicals present in the system. In fact, a 10 ml blood sample is enough to verify the presence of a toxic substance. When it comes to hair samples, toxicologists would refer to the hair follicle as it is useful in determining medium to long-term substance abuse.

A deceased person's gastric contents may also show undigested substances that have been ingested before death. It is also possible to come up with a rough estimation on the time of death depending on the state of digestion of stomach contents.

A toxicology expert witness strengthens evidences when criminal cases are brought to court. They provide a detailed analysis of the substances found during the autopsy and even on the samples collected by the investigators. The outcome of the case largely depends on how accurate the interpretations are. Plaintiffs or defendants will have to seek the services of a toxicology expert witness to have reliable documentation needed for proper litigation. They may even ask the toxicologist to provide testimony before the court.

What is Forensic Toxicology?

The early 1800s and early 1900s are usually referred to by era historians as the “golden age of poisoning”. The incidence of poisoning was so high during the said period that scientists became driven to find antidotes or solutions, eventually giving birth the science of forensic toxicology. The tasks of forensic toxicologists include the examination of blood, tissue samples, and body fluids of a victim to determine if the cause of death was due to drugs or other poisonous substances.

Generally, forensic toxicology is a discipline in forensic science that focuses on the study of toxic substances. To be more specific, it involves the study of drugs, alcohol, and poisons, and their absorption, distribution, and effect to the human body. There are four disciplines under forensic toxicology, namely death investigation toxicology, human performance toxicology, doping control, and forensic workplace drug testing.

Death investigation toxicology focuses on identifying the role of alcohol, drugs, and poison as the cause of death of some people, and is typically practiced by pathologists and medical examiners. On the other hand, human performance toxicology tackles the effects of alcohol and drugs on the performance and behavior of humans.

Finally, doping control is frequently applied in the world of competitive sports as it assists in detecting the use of banned performance enhancing drugs by athletes. Forensic workplace drug testing is used to ensure that employees or workers are compliant with safety standards that strictly prohibit the use and abuse of illegal drugs or substances.