LOGAN POLICE RECEIVE A GRANT TO TEST THE SALIVA OF DUI SUSPECTS FOR DRUGS

Members of The Logan City Police Department have received a $5,800 grant to
launch a one-year pilot study using a saliva swab to detect drugs in a
driver suspected of DUI.

RapiScan swabs take a portion of the driver's saliva and disclose what
drugs, if any, are in the driver's system. It will be used the way
Breathalyzer tests now test for alcohol. If the driver fails the test, he
or she will then take a blood test that would be admissible in court.

The study is the first in the country to use the device on drivers.

Logan Police Department Sgt. Dennis Simonson requested the grant from State
Crime Prevention Grants, which funds community-based programs.

"For $5,800 it was worth the risk, so to speak, to test out some new
technology," said Susan Burke, director of the Utah Substance Abuse and
Anti-Violence Coordinating Council (USAAV).

Because other communities may duplicate the study, the USAAV council was
more willing to fund the pilot project, Burke said.

A representative from the swab's manufacturer, Cozart, will train the
department over the Fourth of July weekend, Simonson said.

Officers will start using the swabs July 1 to detect cocaine,
methamphetamines, marijuana and opiates.

The swab's only use so far is in juvenile probation and parole testing in
New Mexico and California.