HomeMy WebLinkAboutProcedures for Controlled Substance Disposal.d
MINNESOTA DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY
Bureau of Criminal Apprehension
1430 Maryland Avenue E., St. Paul, Minnesota 55106
Phone: 651/793-7000 FAX: 651/793-7001
Website: bca.dps.mn.gov
Alcohol &
June 13, 2013
Gambling
Enforcement
Bureau of
Criminal
To: Minnesota law enforcement agencies
Apprehension
Re: Disposal of manufactured drugs
Driver and
As you know, a growing challenge for Minnesota law enforcement agencies is how to deal
Vehicle Services
with manufactured drugs seized during investigations. Agencies choosing to store it deal with
issues of space, security and the liability of keeping high value material of this nature.
Emergency
Agencies choosing to have it destroyed have the expense and inconvenience of transporting
Communication
the material to an appropriately permitted out-of-state disposal facility. Neither option is a
Networks
good one.
Fiscal &
Administrative
The DPS Office of Justice Programs’ Statewide Gang & Drug Task Force, at the direction of
Services
Department of Public Safety (DPS) Commissioner Ramona Dohman, has collaborated with
the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) and 3M to develop a procedure for law
Homeland
enforcement agencies for packaging, delivery and destruction of manufactured drugs here in
Security and
Minnesota. This new procedure involves minimal expense to local law enforcement agencies
Emergency
and addresses chain-of-custody issues. The newly designated 3M facility in Cottage Grove,
Management
Minnesota is the only MPCA-approved location for the destruction of non-plant-form
material in the state. 3M is providing this service at no cost as a public service. There are no
Minnesota
MPCA-approved facilities in states which border Minnesota.
State Patrol
Office of
How the disposal process works
Communications
Option 1: Contact the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) at 651-
793-1010 to schedule a time to deliver the materials. The BCA will
Office of
collect information from you to populate an Appointment Request Form
Justice Programs
including the source and size of substance containers.
Office of Pipeline
Option 2: Download and complete the Appointment Request Form
Safety
located at https://dps.mn.gov/divisions/ojp/grants/Pages/narcotic-
Schedule
volent-crime-enforcement-teams.aspx and submit it via FAX or email
Office of
appointment
to 651-793-1031 or maris.scheer@state.mn.us.
Traffic Safety
with the BCA
Then, the BCA will then offer you a choice of drop off dates.
State Fire
Appointments must be made a minimum of two weeks in advance of
Marshal
the desired delivery date. Once a date is chosen, 3M will mail your
agency a confirmation letter, delivery instructions, tamper seals and bar
codes. An identical bar code will be placed on the Appointment Request
Form which must match at the time of delivery.
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EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER
The material must be submitted in approved 5- or 30-gallon barrels.
They can be purchased at any time from a vendor of your choosing, but
must have a UN rating of:
5 gallon barrels: 1H2/Y30/S
30 gallon barrels: 1H2/Y180/S
You must document all evidence in each container using separate
Prepare
Controlled Substance Evidence Destruction Forms which will be
material for
delivery
provided by 3M along with the appointment confirmation. Seal and
label each container using the bar code and tamper seal provided by
3M. Agencies may coordinate delivery with other agencies, but
evidence from different agencies cannot be combined into a single
container.
Two sworn officers must accompany the disposal containers to the
unloading area. Only containers with bar codes and information
matching the Appointment Request Form will be accepted. Containers
will be unloaded and weighed then placed in the incinerator and
Deliver
destroyed. Both officers must witness the entire process. One officer
materials for
and a 3M employee will sign the destruction witness box on the
destruction
Controlled Substance Evidence Destruction Form. The officers will
receive the original form and 3M will keep a copy. The BCA must
receive 24-hours advance notice of any delivery cancellations.
Types of evidence accepted
Only non-plant-form, manufactured controlled substances seized as part of an investigation
are authorized for incineration. Examples include cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine and
confiscated pharmaceuticals. Plant-form controlled substances and household
pharmaceuticals obtained during a take-back program must be delivered to one of five other
locations across Minnesota. Those locations are detailed on the MPCA Website at
www.pca.state.mn.us/publications/w-hw4-13.pdf.
Deployment of the new procedure
Deployment of this new procedure is happening in three phases:
Phase 1 - A pilot using BCA controlled substance evidence was successfully
completed in May.
Phase 2 -This phase is currently underway. Minnesota narcotics task forces may
begin scheduling appointments now.
Phase 3 - After the successful completion of phase 2, phase 3 is expected to begin
mid-summer. This will include all Minnesota law enforcement agencies. Agencies
will be notified when this phase begins.
Protecting officers and the substances they transport
DPS Commissioner Dohman has issued a security information declaration to protect the
officers and the controlled substances they transport. The security information declaration
makes the scheduled appointments nonpublic data. Local law enforcement agencies should
not disclose appointment times. So that 3M can assist law enforcement in the secure
disposition of controlled substances, the security information declaration authorizes 3M to
receive the protected data.
(more)
These new procedures provide a consistent, economically feasible way to dispose of
controlled substances safely, efficiently and in accordance with Minnesota law. A more
detailed description of the new procedure can be found on the CJDN Website at
https://app.dps.mn.gov/cjdn/. Agencies with questions about the procedures can contact Gang
& Drug Task Force Coordinator Brian Marquart at 651-201-7338 or
brian.marquart@state.mn.us. Agencies with questions about MPCA rules can contact
Brandon Finke at 651-757-2358 or Brandon.finke@state.mn.us.
Sincerely,
Wade Setter, Superintendent
Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension