[IVY]

THINGS SOON TO GET HAIRY
FOR COPS WHO USE DRUGS


By LARRY CELONA and CYNTHIA R. FAGEN

May 9, 2005 -- The NYPD will soon pluck a strand of hair — rather than rely on a cup of urine — to test cops for illegal drug use.

The new system for random drug testing is to go into effect for all 35,000 police officers in August, according to an internal memo.

And it means there will be less chance of cheating.

Hair analysis has been proved more efficient at screening for cocaine, heroine, PCP, Ecstasy and marijuana use and can detect drugs in the body for up to 90 days.

A urine sample can only detect the use of cocaine within three days or of marijuana within 30, and testers have only a 40 percent chance of identifying drugs in the system.

Hair analysis is faster, too. Results are ready within 48 hours. Urine-test results take an average of 10 days.

Last year, the NYPD conducted 8,055 random drug tests on its members — and just two tested positive.

A computer picks which officers are to be tested. Under the new system, if the officer happens to be bald, hair from other parts of the body will do.

Three strands from as close to the scalp as possible are required. They are placed in an envelope, sealed and initialed by the collector and the officer.

Drug testing is mandatory for officers promoted to sensitive assignments, including work in narcotics, emergency-service and intelligence units.

Since 1996, only probationary cops have had to submit to hair analysis.

In the past, questions have been raised about whether second-hand exposure to crack or marijuana smoke could result in positive test results.

The NYPD dismissed those concerns, citing procedures already in place for cops involved in undercover work.

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