FORENSIC TOXICOLOGY

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FORENSIC TOXICOLOGY

• ETHYL
• ALCOHOL

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TOXICOLOGY

• The study of poisons

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TOXICOLOGISTS

• Detect and identify drugs and poisons in body
  fluids, tissues,
• and organs

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ENVIRONMENTALTOXICOLOGISTS
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OCCUPATIONALTOXICOLOGISTS
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FORENSIC TOXICOLOGISTS-duties limited to legal
issues

• Workplace drug testing
• -
  Postmortem drug testing
• 
  
• Investigation
• of contraband
• materials

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TOXICOLOGY OF ALCOHOL

• A CENTRAL
• NERVOUS SYSTEM
• DEPRESSANT

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90 MILLION AMERICANS DRINK..

• 10 MILLION HAVE A
• DRINKING PROBLEM

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EFFECTS OF ETHYL ALCOHOLON THE HUMAN BODY

• PRINCIPAL EFFECT IS ON THE

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FOREBRAIN IS AFFECTED FIRST

• reasoning, planning, parts of speech, movement,
• emotions, and problem solving

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REAR PORTIONS ARE AFFECTED NEXT
movement, orientation, recognition, perception of
stimuli perception and recognition of auditory
stimuli, memory, and speech
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FINALLY THE MEDULLA IS AFFECTED
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• LOWERS INHIBITIONS
• In one study of unplanned
• pregnancies in 14-21 year olds,
• 1/3 of the girls who had
• gotten pregnant had been
• drinking when they had sex
• 91 of them reported that
• the sex was unplanned.
• Half of all newly-reported AIDS cases are
• for young people ages 14-21

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IMPAIRS JUDGEMENT
40 OF TRAFFIC FATALITIES INVOLVE ALCOHOL
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LONG-TERM EFFECTS
CIRRHOTIC LIVER
HEALTHY LIVER
JAUNDICED KIDNEYS
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ABSORPTION INTO THE BLOODSTREAM
20 OF ALCOHOL IS ABSORBED INTO THE BLOODSTREAM
ACROSS THE WALLS OF THE STOMACH
80 IS ABSORBED ACROSS THE WALLS OF THE SMALL
INTESTINE
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FACTORS THAT AFFECTHOW FASTALCOHOLIS ABSORBED
INTO THE BLOODSTREAM
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TIME TAKEN TO CONSUME THE DRINK
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ALCOHOL CONTENT OF THE DRINK
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TYPE OF ALCOHOL

• ABSORBED SLOWLY
• 
  ABSORBED FASTER

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AMOUNT OF ALCOHOL CONSUMED
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AMOUNT AND TYPE OF FOOD IN
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WEIGHT OF DRINKER
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SEX OF DRINKER
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ALCOHOL DISTRIBUTESONLY TO WATERY AREAS
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ONE DRINK IS EQUAL TO..
ONE
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• Maximum blood-alcohol concentrations in the
  blood may not be reached until
• after time of consumption

TO
90 MIN IS AVERAGE
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• Under NORMAL
• SOCIAL DRINKING conditions
• It takes anywhere
• from 30 90 minutes
• from the time of the final drink
• until absorption is complete

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Since alcohol is distributed through the watery
portions of the body

• Other organs may be tested for
  alcohol

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ELIMINATION OF BURN-OFF RATE

• 0.015 - 0.020 w/v per hour
  (0.015 is .015 g alcohol per 100 ml blood)
• 1 1½ DRINKS PER HOUR

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OXIDATION

• AROUND 95 OF ALCOHOL
• THAT ENTERS THE BODY
• IS OXIDIZED IN THE LIVER
• Alcohol ?
• acetaldehyde ?
• acetic acid?
• CO2 H2O

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EXCRETION

• Is the elimination of alcohol in
• UNCHANGED STATE

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Blood Alcohol Content
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Measuring Breath for BAC

• Amount of Alcohol EXHALED is
• DIRECTLY PROPORTIONAL
• to the Concentration of
  alcohol
• in
  the BLOOD

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Two ways to measure alcoholin the body

• INDIRECT
  METHOD
• DIRECT METHOD

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ANATOMY

• ARTERIES VEINS

CARRY BLOOD AWAY FROM THE HEART
CARRY BLOOD TO THE HEART
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Alcohol travels through the body
20 of alcohol is Absorbed from walls of
stomach To veins
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(Small intestine)
80 passes from walls of small intestine to
Veins to liver
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In ALVEOLI oxygen enters the blood and CO2
leaves it
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At 340 C

• The ratio of alcohol
• in the blood
• To
  alcohol in the
  alveoli is
• 21001

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• 1 ml of blood
• contains the
• Same amount
• of alcohol
• as 2100 ml
• alveolar breath

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• DURING ABSORPTION CONCENTRATION
• OF ALCOHOL
• IN
  ARTERIAL BLOOD
• WILL BE
• CONSIDERABLY
  HIGHER
• THAN VENOUS BLOOD
• (dark red color)
• During elimination,
• venous blood has higher BAC

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THE BREATHALYZER

• Measures ALCOHOL CONTENT
  of ALVEOLAR BREATH

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THE BREATHALYZER

• INDIRECTLY MEASURES THE AMOUNT OF ALCOHOL
  CONSUMED BY MEASURING THE ABSORPTION OF LIGHT
  USING
• A SPECTROPHOTOMETER

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• HOW IT WORKS
• 16 H(aq) Cr2O72-(aq) 3 C2H5OH(l)
  ?
• (orange)
  (alcohol)
• 4 Cr3(aq) 3 CH3COOH(aq) 11
  H2O(l)
• (green)
• UNUSED ORANGE MIXES WITH
• GREEN PRODUCED
• TO MAKE A BLUE SOLUTION

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In other words.

• ORANGE ALCOHOL ? GREEN
  (Cr2O72-(aq))
• Little or no alcohol ORANGE
• Some alcohol BLUE (orange green )
• A lot of alcohol GREEN or GREENISH BLUE
• The HIGHER the concentration of alcohol,
• the LOWER the concentration of potassium
  dichromate (K2Cr2O7)

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• FIELD SOBRIETY TESTS are performed to find
  the degree of impairment and whether an
  evidential test is justified

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ALCOHOL GAZE NYSTAGMUS
INVOLUNTARY JERKING OF THE EYE AS EYE MOVES FROM
LOOKING STRAIGHT TO LOOKING UP DOWN
OR LOOKING TO THE SIDE

• ALCOHOL GAZE NYSTAGMUS
• (HORIZONTAL OR VERTICAL)

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WALK TURN TEST
DIVIDED - ATTENTION TASKS
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ONE-LEG BALANCE
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ANALYSIS OF BLOOD

• FOR ALCOHOL

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GAS CHROMATOGRAPHY
USED IN FORENSIC LABS
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IN HOSPITALS..

• A CHEMICAL REACTION
• IS CARRIED
• OUT IN
• THE LAB

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COLLECTIONANDPRESERVATIONOFBLOOD
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• NON-ALCOHOLIC DISINFECTANTS
• ANTICOAGULANTS
• 
  PRESERVATIVES
• 
  REFRIGERATION
• SEALED AIR-TIGHT
• CONTAINERS

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ALCOHOL AND THE LAW
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BLOOD TOXICATION LEVELS

• OVER 21

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UNDER 21

• .02 or higher

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INCREASED DRIVING RISK
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REFUSE TO TAKE A TESTFOR ALCOHOL INTOXICATION

• AUTOMATIC LOSS OF LICENSE FOR ONE YEAR
• AN ADDITIONAL
• LOSS OF LICENSE FOR ONE YEAR IF CONVICTED

IMPLIED CONSENT LAW
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PA DUI LAWS
.08

• Three tiered system
• Fines, jail time depend on the amount of
  alcohol in the body (BAC) and if there have
  been any previous convictions

0.1-0.159
0.16 and up
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ARD (Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition

• The ARD program consists of the following
• up to 12-month license suspension
• community service
• restitution
• 6-month court supervision
• attendance at Alcohol Highway Safety School and
  its costs
• CRN evaluation
• court and administrative costs
• treatment and other conditions that a judge may
  impose
• Persons with any prior convictions are not
  eligible for ARD

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HOMICIDE BY VEHICLE WHILE DRIVING UNDER THE
INFLUENCE

• Section 3735 of the Pennsylvania Vehicle Code
• Any person who unintentionally causes the death
  of another person as the result of driving under
  the influence of alcohol or controlled substance
  and who is convicted of violating the law
  regarding driving under the influence is guilty
  of a felony of the second degree when the
  violation is the cause of death.
• The penalty is a mandatory sentence of 3-10 years
  incarceration and consecutive 3-10 year terms for
  each victim whose death is a result. The fine may
  be as high as 25,000 per victim.

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25 of teen drivers killed in 2003 had a blood
alcohol concentration of .08 or greater. A BAC
of .08 is the level which all states define drunk
driving.
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• More than 1,700 college students in the
  U.S. are killed each yearabout 4.65 a
  day
• as a result of alcohol- related injuries.

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Alcohol poisoning

• most often occurs
• as a result of the rapid intake of alcohol,
  also known as binge drinking. This high amount of
  alcohol can lead to seizures, choking, an
  irregular heart beat and even death.

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• Signs of Alcohol Poisoning
  Confusion
• Slow reflexes
• Unable to communicate
  effectively
• Slurring in speech
• Rapid pulse
• Feeling sick, vomiting
• Dehydration
• Unconsciousness
• Moist, clammy skin
• Inability to walk
• Pale, blue colored skin

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What are the Effects of Alcohol Poisoning?

• The effects of alcohol poisoning can be
  devastating, especially if the drinker becomes
  unconscious. In fact, numerous deaths have
  occurred as a result of an unconscious person
  choking on their own vomit or breathing in vomit.
  Possible effects of alcohol poisoning include
• Irregular heart beat
• Choking (from vomiting)
• Coma
• Decrease in body temperature (hypothermia)
• Brain damage
• Seizure
• Strange breathing patterns
• Inhalation of vomit causing a halt in breathing
  patterns (asphyxiation)
• Death

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5 Steps to Take if Someone You Know Has Alcohol
Poisoning

• Call 911 or a local poison control center if you
  think someone you know has alcohol poisoning.
• Stay with the person. Never leave a severely
  intoxicated person alone.
• Turn the person onto their side to prevent
  choking if vomiting occurs.
• Monitor breathing levels. If you know CPR, be
  prepared to use this skill in case of an
  emergency.
• Continually try to revive the person if they are
  passed out.

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EXPUNGEMENT

• is a legal process through which an arrest or
  conviction may be erased from a person's criminal
  record.

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In Pennsylvania

• Juvenile DUIs

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• PERSONAL
• AND
  PROFESSIONAL
• CONSEQUENCES

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75 OF EVIDENCE

• NOW BEING EVALUATED
• IN U.S. CRIME LABS
• IS DRUG-RELATED
• 90 of drugs tested in a toxicology lab