As the title implies, the objective of this fact sheet is to provide treatment court professionals with a scientifically based justification for discontinuing the interpretation of urine drug levels in an effort to define client drug use behavior. This fact sheet is intended for treatment court practitioners routinely engaged in the interpretation and evaluation of urine drug testing results for the purpose of participant case adjudication, particularly participant sanctioning. Given that most treatment courts do not have routine access to biomedical or pharmacological expertise, this fact sheet recommends that the use of urine drug concentrations be eliminated from the court’s decision-making process in order to protect client rights and ensure that evidentiary standards are maintained.

Author:

Paul Carey, M.S.
Forensic Toxicologist

Date: 2004