Date of Conferral

6-13-2024

Date of Award

June 2024

Degree

Ph.D.

School

Criminal Justice

Advisor

Gregory Koehle

Abstract

Law enforcement officers are charged with the responsibility of interpreting complicated social situations of the public every day. Adding difficulty is rapid cannabis legalization across the United States, including Michigan; encompassed in medicinal legalization in 2008 and recreational legalization in 2018, which has brought with it many changes, affecting economic, social, safety, and criminal elements. Michigan has seen an approximate 45% increase in traffic crashes with drivers who tested positive for cannabis over a five-year time frame (2013 – 2018). The purpose of this quantitative correlational study was to determine the accuracy of roadside oral fluid testing introduced in Michigan through the Oral Fluid Roadside Analysis Pilot Program initiated in 2017. Bases of social power theory and punctuated equilibrium theory were used as a framework, and secondary data were collected through the initial pilot counties by a large Midwestern state police agency and drug recognition experts (DREs) from various agencies. Quantitative data analysis was conducted using correlational testing to examine the predictive accuracy of oral fluid testing central to the implementation of the pilot program. These key findings indicate that accuracy relationships examined for these testing methods do not support a broad application of reliability for identified all substances / drug categories using oral fluid testing, The findings of this study support positive social change by supporting law enforcement through a substantiation of objective tools and training to confidently approach oral fluid testing as a vetted method for investigating drugged driving.

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