Investigators believe that large amounts of K2 come from the Houston area because it is an overseas importation point. Want But tens of thousands of incarcerated people in the U.S. are subjected to it for months, sometimes years, at a time. Corrections1 is revolutionizing the way in which the corrections community finds relevant news, View our Terms of Service Crime:the 2017 abduction and slaying of Lincoln store clerk Sydney Loofe. One officer they believe was exposed had a fierce burning sensation in his head, which felt like his head was covered with nits, and [he] spent the night tearing at the top of his head. One former inmate said hes seen men go berserk, turning on their best friends. NIK Tests A and U both came back "presumptive positive" for amphetamines. Inmates have figured out novel ways of smuggling the drugs in, such as lacing paper with liquid K2. He said: Ive made mistakes, but I dont deserve this.. The lab test on the mail later came back negative. If you do get a red light at a certain batch, you can say one or more letters in this batch are suspect, put them aside and deal with them later.. $ 50.00 $ 45.00. All rights reserved. Inmates open them in the presence of corrections officers, then copies are made and given to the inmate. Vasquez-Maldonado's lawsuit was dismissed. Kratom Meang Da Liquid Incense 5ML - K2 Liquid Spray Contraband is a major problem for federal and state prison systemsespecially synthetic marijuana, commonly called K2 or "spice," and suboxone, a synthetic opioid. Unlike in Chacon, however, the federal district court that eventually heard Steffey's lawsuit dismissed his case in May 2020 and denied his motion to hold an evidentiary hearing on the reliability of NIK tests. Steffey is a former federal inmate, and a "shot" is federal prison slang for a disciplinary infractionas in, "They gave him a shot." But in the past two years, prison officials say they have launched a continuing series of targeted crackdowns on visitors and guards who are smuggling it to convicts and on inmates who pay up to $500 an ounce to have it smuggled in to them. Corrections1 is revolutionizing the way in which the corrections community finds relevant news, So far, no prison deaths have been attributed to K2 in Texas, authorities said. Harris says the over-the-counter cold medicine Benadryl can produce positive results in field tests for several types of illicit drugs. A prisoner said after the 9:30 pm count, the bathrooms and shower stalls fill up with prisoners smoking some version of K2 or Spice. In southwestern Virginia, jail officials have intercepted photos and other papers soaked in liquid suboxone, a substance used to treat heroin addiction, and have even temporarily banned inmates. Because the BOP does not require NIK tests for contraband to be independently verified, it's impossible to say how often it happens, butReasonfound at least one case where a federal inmate was punished based on the results of a NIK test that was later invalidated by a crime lab. Lance Lowry, president of a Huntsville union that represents correctional officers, recalled one shift a few years ago when he was working in an Huntsville-area prison. One man began to dance around like a ballerina. In 2016, sheriff's deputies in Monroe County, Georgia, arrested Macon resident Dasha Fincher after a search of her car turned up a plastic baggie of blue crystals. In October of 2015, BBC News reported how investigators concluded the use of Spice in an Oxfordshire prison contributed to an increase in violence. One prisoner wrote how he received a misconduct report accusing him of having K2 in a bottle he said held only shampoo. Copyright 2023 When used to test for drugs sprayed on paper (such as legal mail), these tests are less accurate than witchcraft, phrenology, or simply picking a number out of a hat, the lawsuit alleges. It was encouraging to see the coverage given to it by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. This form of K2 is much harder to detect than traditional leafy K2 products that look more like marijuana. Mr. Coffee grounds also turned the solution in NIK Test A a dark brown, although it was unclear whether that was the result of a chemical reaction or just the color of the grounds themselves. Shop. The BOP submitted pictures of the papers as exhibits in Steffey's lawsuit, but they are too low-resolution to read. On Wednesday, Pennsylvania Gov. It's not easy being in prison, and having a little something like Liquid K2 in prisons can surely make it a little easy for them Liquid K2 spray at the largest drug store in USA & Canada Best Spice Paper Worldwide. We have special a4 K2 infused paper for sale. Interactions with innocuous chemicals commonly found in paper frequently create false positivesalmost 80% of the time, according to one DOC officials estimate.. Fincher's bail was placed at $1 million. It took eight or nine officers to get him under control.". One third reported using Spice in the previous month. AUSTIN, TexasIt's the zombies that freak everybody out. Federal inmates trying to fight NIK test determinations are caught in a bind: They have no procedural grounds to challenge their punishment as long as these tests are considered "some evidence," but none of them can get far enough in court to challenge the validity of that evidence, even though there is an ample record to support their claimsincluding from the government itself. F rom shanks to . Billy Steffey is determined not to eat the shot. This is not an error. Sirchie did not return requests for comment for this story. Chemists cooking up these substances are tinkering with the molecular structure to skirt DEA regulations, says Frunzi. . BOP investigators also discovered a chain of email messages that appeared to be thinly veiled code about money transactions and deliveries. After he exhausted his appeals within the BOP bureaucracyall deniedSteffey filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus in federal court in January 2019. Learn how this easy-to-use device can enhance your contraband detection strategy, Learn why a layered screening strategy is so important and how it can help your facility plug holes, Adding the B-SCAN body scanner to the screening process made it next to impossible for inmates to sneak drugs into the facility. Crime: Killing and dismembering 3-year-old Adam Gomez of Scottsbluff in 1999 and feeding some of his remains to a dog. The Nebraska and Iowa prison systems, as well as the Douglas County Jail, have changed their policies on book purchases. The problem is that really, you don't know what's in them. K2 spice spray is also called K2 spray. Crime:The 2002 Norfolk bank robbery; he shot and killed Lola Elwood, a bank employee. And he seemingly had good reason to be: The incarcerated person lost their job and received a disciplinary ticket, was confined to a cell, and was threatened with a potential $100 fee if a future confirmatory lab test came back positive, according to the lawsuit. a note for a NARK II product on Sirchies website reads. Open the tools menu in your browser. Crime:2002 Norfolk bank robbery; he shot and killed Lisa Bryant, a bank employee. All rights reserved. She once tried to send her incarcerated client, Eugene Ivey, a legal package months after he was granted parole. It can be hard to find an open shower stall to take a shower. Some defendantsfacing an extended stay in jail and threats from prosecutors about the sentences they'll get if they turn down a dealplead guilty to crimes they know they didn't commit. Chemists cooking up these substances are tinkering with the molecular structure to skirt DEA regulations, says Frunzi. It's a versatile drug that can give birth to several forms and uses. We're going to go with what happened in the office. After waiting six or seven weeks, he asked about the results. But Steffey says the current system gives correctional officers an easy way to gin up shots against inmates. To avoid that scenario, some incarcerated people are no longer accepting mail, which cuts off an important way to get in touch with their attorneys during the pandemic, the lawsuit alleges. Tom Wolf halted all mail delivery and. We have special a4 K2 infused paper for sale. While U.S. media coverage of this problem was scarce before Hernandezs death, it has been regularly noted as a concern in U.K. prisons for several years. "That's not going to give you a reliable result.". "Atoms can combine together in groupswe call them functional groupsand these color tests are simply looking for the presence of a particular group," Harris says. You can buy the infused A4 plain paper and write a letter to send to your buddy in prison. Its used in a context where its just obviously failing at every turn. Contraband Suboxone and synthetic marijuana come in many forms, and inmates and their associates are endlessly inventive when it comes to smuggling them behind bars. Here are seven things you need to know about these drugs: Suboxone is a brand-name combination of buprenorphine, an opioid medication used to treat opioid addiction, and the overdose antidote naloxone, better known in its stand-alone form as Narcan. All rights reserved. The fact that this has been going on during the pandemic, when there are no contact visits allowedits really foreclosing one of the major means of communications with peoples clients, and also a way to get their court documents.. In April, a search of a prison in Clarinda, Iowa, found 60 inmates involved in consuming or possessing K2, prompting new precautions to keep the liquid form from being smuggled in. "Effective immediately and until further notice, all SIRCHIE NARK II drug testing will be suspended and no misbehavior report will be issued, nor any adverse action taken against an incarcerated individual for suspected contraband drugs where a test is necessary," a leaked DOCCS memo obtained byGothamistread. The investigator then tested another piece of the paper with NIK Test U, which "turned an immediate dark burgundy color, indicating Amphetamines.". They started to send counterfeit letters from attorneys so K2 mailings could bypass the screenings required for regular mail, but not for communication with lawyers. Early Wednesday morning on April 19, 2017, Aaron Hernandez was found dead in his prison cell. Chris said: Its becoming an issue at every institution. Courts have ruled that inmates have no right to demand independent verification of drug tests. Google synthetic marijuana urine tests. You can even order the kits through Amazon. Fentanyl isnt the only hot contraband drug here are some key facts about two of the substances most often smuggled through the mail, By Rachel Zoch, Corrections1 BrandFocus Staff. There is no parole in the federal prison system, so accruing good time credit is one of the only ways that inmates can shave time off their sentences. Six staff members were caught smuggling drugs, including. More than 200 Nebraskans died of drug overdoses in 2020, an increase of nearly 43% from the previous year, according to a new federal report. Were going through a lot of extra work and hassle to keep people safe and keep this out of the jail, said Douglas County Corrections Director Mike Meyers. The last thing an inmate wants to do is to test positive for any of these substances, so a substance that you don't believe is going to have a positive drug test is very attractive.. K2 spice spray [ K2 spray ] Liquid k2 on paper with credit cards online Writing for The Fix on April 19th, Seth Ferranti described how the U.S. Bureau of Prisons (BOP) has a synthetic marijuana problem. Its multitude of names rivals the variety of ingredients. Police have also allegedly used similar field drug tests to arrest people overbird poopordrywall dust thattested positive as cocaine. Because Suboxone contains naloxone, its difficult to overdose, but its still possible. Home - Chemicalmedshop It has had a negative impact on my health and my family, as any accusation against Mr. Ivey was effectively an accusation that I committed a serious criminal offense.. A spokesperson for the Massachusetts Department of Correction said in an email to VICE News that the DOC does not comment on pending/ongoing litigation. The spokesperson did not respond to a follow-up question asking the department to elaborate on its existing policies surrounding presumptive drug tests. Crime:four murders during a 2013 killing spree in Omaha. Its cost on the street: about $20 an ounce. At the Douglas County Jail and at the maximum-security Nebraska State Penitentiary in Lincoln, letters from attorneys are being checked. Lexipol. Steffey has put out a YouTube video demonstrating that a plain piece of paper will yield a burgundy result. Reasonbought two packs of field drug tests and got positive results for several common, legal substances. As a result, prisoners are allegedly being given solitary confinement, losing visitation privileges, or facing other punishments. This paper is odorless and colorless. Sign up here. Here, like the U.S. prison in Forest City Arkansas, the drugs mostly come into the prison is as throwovers tossed over the prison wall. Texas' prison system conducts random drug tests on convicts and staff at a cost of about $10 each. COs can then don proper protective gear and swab each piece in the flagged batch to identify the contaminated piece or pieces for destruction. Add to cart. Its chemical makeup is routinely changed by overseas manufacturers to avoid detection, according to authorities. Liquid K2. Subscribe to this blog to get an email every time a new post goes live! This may be called Tools or use an icon like the cog. He specializes in tax and transportation issues, following the governor and the state prison system. The other one was fighting us and everyone else. K2 spice spray [ K2 spray on paper ] from Liquid K2 Zone This form of K2 is much harder to detect than traditional leafy K2 products that look more like marijuana. Similarly, Green was confined to a cell, given a disciplinary ticket, and threatened with fees over more conclusive lab testingwhich later showed there weren't any drugs in his mail. This paper is odorless and colorless. Add to cart. There was a problem saving your notification. Precise and accurate detection and confiscation of contraband in prisons can prevent drug abuse, violence and further criminal acts. Liquid K2 in prisons can be used in various ways and it would surely let the inmates have a relaxing and peaceful time. NARK only tests for the possible presence of certain chemical compounds. Prison police say they have also recently busted wives, cousins and children of convicts - even a grandmother - for trying to smuggle K2 into East Texas prisons. Sale! The advantages of such tests for law enforcement are that they're cheap, they're portable, and they don't require a chemistry degree to use. "They had this paperwork and knowledge that I wasn't allowed to possess for two years, and they made me suffer the consequences.". While the eternal spiritual state of his soul cant be known with any certainty, what is known for sure is there was K2, a form of synthetic marijuana, in him when he died. According to the federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP), Steffey conspired to smuggle drugs into prison in the form of a sheaf of legal papers laced with an illicit substance. Writing for Newsweek, Michelle McPhee reported Hernandez had a Bible open to John 3:16 in his cell and had scrawled the verse in red ink on his forehead. GREEN K2 DARK GALLON | k2 spice spray | liquid k2 in prisons You have permission to edit this article. With the right tools and strategies, correctional leaders can protect their employees and catch contraband smugglers without radical policy changes that can trigger expensive lawsuits. Even the test manufacturer warns the results should be backed up by further evidence. Copyright 2023 Contraband is a major problem for federal and state prison systemsespecially synthetic marijuana, commonly called K2 or "spice," and suboxone, a synthetic opioid. In 2019,Reasonobtained body camera footage showing a former Florida sheriff's deputy arresting an innocent man after the deputy allegedly found methamphetamines in the man's car. California Dreams Liquid Guards will smuggle K2 in, seeing it as a lesser evil and as a way to make some easy money. Liquid K2. Various types of paper seemed to have little effect on NIK Test A, though the solution turned the paper brown. Current and former employees at Nebraska state prisons testified to Nebraska lawmakers about what record-high vacancies and other troubling is, Marijuana hasn't been legalized in Nebraska, but if and when it is, the Nebraska Cannabis Association said it will work to develop"a robust, . Texas lawmakers outlawed it in 2015. Its all a conspiracy to get everyone to tell on each other. Another person started hugging his bunk, while screaming like a banshee. When other prisoners tried to quiet him, it only became worse. It's a trend being played out nationally, as well, that officials say endangers the safety of convicts and prison staff. Outside of prison, those accused of drug possession based on a field test at least have some recourse to the criminal court system, where the high standards of evidence require presumptive positive field tests to be confirmed by crime labs. But liquid K2, when sprayed on paper, is odorless and colorless, and there are no easy field tests to determine if something has been soaked in the stuff. Last year, 560 of the 1,015 drug-contraband cases - slightly less than half - involved K2. A series 100 offense could result in 60 days in Disciplinary Segregation (the hole), or the loss of good time, commissary, or visiting and phone privileges for up to one year. Ivey had worked very hard to educate himself and prove he was someone who deserved a chance at parole. The Houston Police Department discontinued the use of drug field tests in 2017. "Charging between $10 for just an inch square of K2 up to $500 for a full sheet of K2," he said. And this is the rub of Steffey's argument in his lawsuit. Legal High K2 Spice Paper 200.00 $ - 1,500.00 $ Each A4 sheet is infused with 25 ml=0.845351 fluid oz of liquid K2. Synthetic marijuana, often referred to as K2 or Spice, is a catch-all term for lab-created variants of THC, the chemical in marijuana that causes a high. Follow him on Twitter @PaulHammelOWH. Smuggling K2 into prisons is done by a variety of methods, but visitation is the primary method. Forensic experts say the tests can't be relied on alone; they're not admissible evidence in court; and the manufacturers explicitly warn that all tests should be sent to crime labs to be verified. After he got out of solitary, Blaisure says he convinced BOP staffers to send the alleged narcotics to a local crime lab to be tested. The footage shows the officer performing a NARK II test for methamphetamines, which turned dark red instead of blue, indicating a negative result, according to the manufacturer. Take steps to catch contraband Suboxone and synthetic marijuana to keep your COs safe and your facility secure. Fentanyl isnt the only drug to watch out for in jails and prisons. A member of the security team at the prison said these guys who use K2 are often zombie-like: Theyre just groaning, moaning and not able to understand anything thats being said to them. SCI Huntingdon first noticed K2 about eighteen months ago. Instead, he was transferred to FCI Sheridan, a medium-security prison in Oregon. Texas' prison system conducts random drug tests on convicts and staff at a cost of about $10 each. It has become the most comprehensive and trusted online destination for correctional professionals nationwide. Look for a box or option labeled Home Page (Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari) or On Startup (Chrome). These drug-laced papers can be a significant risk to COs and others tasked with mail inspection and delivery. Other law enforcement agencies have changed their policies over the last decade. Several companies make similar kits, but they all rely on the same underlying chemical reactions. He was like a zombie. It ruled that the single field test afforded to many incarcerated people is "all the process due them under the Constitution and interpreting case law.". These policies have been challenged in court, sometimes successfully. These are mind-altering chemicals created by humans or sprayed on dried, crushed plant material for smoking, or sold as a liquid to evaporate and breathe in cigarettes and other devices. That deputy has since been indicted on more than 50 criminal charges related to framing innocent people. "The substance was determined to be chocolate. Of the 950 contraband busts inside Texas prisons between January and mid-June, 477 involved illegal drugs - and 268 of those, more than half, were for possessing K2, according to state statistics. The Open Secret of K2 in Prisons | Faith Seeking Understanding But Steffey, still insistent on dodging the shot, says he plans on refiling the case as a civil rights lawsuit instead of a habeas petition. 11 talking about this. I refuse to believe that every defense attorney in Massachusetts is suddenly a drug dealer.. To combat the flood of drugs, many state prisons have taken steps like banning physical mail and used book donations, which they claim are a major source of contraband. The staffer noted that the papers felt "unusually thick" and gritty and looked discolored. Jail inmates now getting drug-soaked paper through mail, jails moving Shop Now Free Shipping ALL TEST RESULTS MUST BE CONFIRMED BY AN APPROVED ANALYTICAL LABORATORY! a note for a NARK II product on Sirchies website reads. Please subscribe to keep reading. The state holds onto the originals for several days in a secure location before destroying them. State investigators both inside the prison system and out blame the growing problem with K2 on its cheap price and the fact that routine drug screens fail to detect its presence. He said his agency always works to educate inmates and give them better alternatives, such as social activities, to seeking out K2. The kits are screening tests that help the user determine what a substancemightbe. The New York State Correctional Officers & Police Benevolent Association, a union of state correctional workers, told local news outlets that DOCCS found there were false-positive results with the testing kits being used to identify contraband drugs. Skip to content. In 2017, correctional officers at FCI Sheridan put Albarca and his cellmate, Carlos Vasquez-Maldonado, in the SHU and accused the two of possessing drugs in their cell. (Federal inmates must exhaust their administrative appeals before they can file a lawsuit, and the exhaustion process often lives up to its name.). In the immediate future, we hope that the DOC stops using this test that everybody should know is meaningless, Leonida said. The evidence against Steffey is a string of suspicious emails and two field tests, which you can buy off the internet for about $2 apiece, that came back "presumptive positive" for amphetamines. Going through the mail piece by piece places a huge drain on staffing resources, as COs have to inspect each piece. Drug Believed To Be Sickening Prison Employees Explained By Addiction Expert CBS Pittsburgh 114K subscribers Subscribe 36K views 4 years ago An addiction expert says he doesn't understand how. 'K2 is the new drug of choice' in Texas prisons, official says He also lost 41 days of good time credits and had visitations suspended for nearly six months. Campers or free world people throw packages over the recreation yard fence. At FCI Beckley in West Virginia the regular smuggling gauntlet is through the mailroom. But this is not just freak occurrence within a single Massachusetts state prison. "That's how [these tests] were integrated into forensic science in the first place, to be followed up with confirmatory tests," Harris says. Lower federal courts, building onHill's precedent, have held that a single positive drug test is sufficient to support disciplinary action; that those tests do not have to have a 100 percent confidence factor; and that inmates have no due process right to have those tests verified by an outside lab. He also made red ink marks on his hands and feet, mimicking the stigmata of the crucifixion of Christ. On the street, the same liquid in many areas sells for $100 or more an ounce, officials said. Among the precautions taken by the state, he said, has been to monitor inmate financial accounts to look for unusual deposits or spending that could be associated with purchases of K2 and other contraband. The fluid is typically grease or oil with other proprietary substances added to thicken it. Writing for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Rich Lord described the K2 problem at the Pennsylvania State Correctional Institution Huntingdon. In 1989, a 4th Circuit Court of Appeals panel rejected an inmate's argument that relying solely on unconfirmed positive results to impose sanctions violated the right to procedural due process. "But I promise you, it happens to people on the street too. Inmates across the country are dying from K2 overdoses - Vice "His eyes was as big as my fist," said one veteran correctional officer, who quickly summoned backup to the cellblock disturbance. K2 begins as a liquid that can be sprayed on any kind of paper product, like letters. Ciaramella Instead, a BOP disciplinary hearing officer found Steffey guilty of introducing contraband narcotics into the prison. One of its more common product names is Kush. Synthetic weed They just do dumb shit. More extensive screening tests that detect K2 can cost more than six times that, officials said . Procedures and protocols used by correctional facilities can vary, but one idea for efficient use according to Frunzi is: You can take one swab for the IONSCAN 600, drag it across 10 or 20 pieces of mail, and as long as the machine says the swab is clean, you confirmed that all 20 pieces of mail are clean. In 2011, a United Nations Special Rapporteur on torture concluded that solitary confinement beyond 15 days constituted cruel and inhumane punishment. I know its costing us in terms of overtime and paper, Meyers said. The K2 problem is the latest chapter in the cat-and-mouse game played by those seeking to smuggle contraband into prisons and jails, and those trying to keep it out. One was spaced out of his mind. Some inmates claim they were wrongly identified as having K2. ", After spending two years going through the Bureau of Prisons' grievance process and appealing his disciplinary sanctions, fruitlessly, Blaisure filed a petition in federal court in July 2016 seeking to restore his lost good time credits. And in prison, a "positive" field test can be enough to get inmates thrown in solitary confinement and stripped of other privileges. Nebraska prisons are implementing a similar system. User Voice said the use and popularity of Spice contributed to an increase of violence, bullying, mental and physical ill health concerns, and even death within British prisons. Fearing the potential of severe consequences, some people incarcerated in Massachusetts Department of Correction facilities are starting to refuse correspondence altogether, forcing attorneys to drive long distances to hand-deliver court documents and other important communications to their clients. First, the BOP doesnt regularly test for synthetic marijuana. Crime:kidnapping, raping and murdering Heather Guerrero, a 15-year-old Gering newspaper carrier, in 2003. Inmates then smoke or ingest pieces of the soaked paper, or sell it to other inmates. Faulty Drug Tests Are Finding K2 in Prisoners' Mail, Lawsuit - Vice Request information from Smiths Detection. "It used to be marijuana or something else. Douglas County immediately shreds the original, Meyers said, to comply with confidentiality requirements for attorney-client correspondence. Prisoners are tested for illicit drugs such as heroin and marijuana, but the standard urines tests dont screen for the metabolites from synthetic marijuana. If that frustration over presumptive drug tests sounds familiar, its because similar complaints have been made against police departments in recent years. Possession of illicit drugs like heroin or marijuana or a positive urine test for those substances is a series 100 offense, the most serious incident report. Nebraska Corrections, for instance, now bans shipments of books from Amazon and restricts purchases to one company, Edward R. Hamilton, which specializes in providing reading materials for correctional facilities. Your shot is staying the way it is. The latest security screening technology can help keep officers and inmates safe by mitigating the risk of unrest, illness and debt which often result from access to illicit goods and improvised or smuggled weapons. Months ago at the Ferguson Unit, a state prison north of Huntsville long known as one of Texas' tougher lockups, a convict doing 30 years for drug trafficking "flipped out" and started yelling and swinging wildly at correctional officers and other convicts.
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