The Minnesota Department of Public Safety’s Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) has completed a pilot project that could lead to new screening tools for law enforcement to save lives on Minnesota roads. Drug recognition evaluators (DREs) from law enforcement agencies across the state participated in the project. They tested two instruments, the Abbott SoToxa™ Oral Fluid Mobile Test System and the Dräger DrugTest 5000.

 

At a news conference for media, OTS, the Minnesota State Patrol and a Blaine Police Department DRE will:

· Highlight project results.

· Discuss the dangers of drug-impaired driving.

· Share experiences of how the instruments worked in the field.

 

OTS submitted a report of the results to state legislators this month. The report covers the evaluation of the two instruments for factors such as ease of use, reliability, accuracy and practicality.