1. Policy

This policy is adopted as authorized by Minnesota Statutes section 181.950-.957.

The results of all testing shall remain an administrative (i.e., non-criminal) matter. Unless otherwise noted results shall be documented only on an interoffice memo and retained by the inspection unit and/or part of the internal affairs unit file and handled consistent with such files.  The recording of the test by BWC is required and should be noted in the memo to inspections.

    • The members of the following units, as a condition of their assignment to the unit, are subject to drug and alcohol screening as outlined in Section II B. The units are:
    • Crisis negotiators
    • Special weapons and tactics (S.W.A.T.) team
    • Bomb squad

Any member who refuses to submit to this form of testing for judgment, fitness and readiness for duty shall be immediately removed from assignment to the special unit. Such removal shall not affect any other assignment the officer may have.

    • Any sworn officer of this department who is directly involved in a serious police incident as defined below shall be required to participate in an alcohol screening test immediately following the event, or as soon as the tactical situation allows. The supervisor in charge shall monitor the events to ensure that appropriate officer(s) participate in an alcohol screening test.

Officers involved in the following events shall submit to testing:

    • Discharge of a firearm at a human being or a vehicle in which human beings are contained.
    • Discharge of a firearm for the purpose of issuing a warning shot.
    • Crashes involving a police vehicle which injury is sustained by any involved employee or community member requiring immediate medical attention by hospital personnel. Note: This provision applies to all members of the department.
    • Police pursuit in which the driver of a motor vehicle flees or attempts to flee a peace officer who is acting in the lawful discharge of an official duty, and such chase involves or is a contributing factor to an automobile crash by either the fleeing vehicle or pursuing police vehicle.
    • An officer shall be required to submit to a drug and alcohol screening test whenever there is a reasonable basis to believe that the officer is improperly using or under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Such reasonable basis testing shall be determined to be appropriate and conducted pursuant to procedure Section II.C.
    • Any officer, who is, via a valid doctor’s prescription, using medication that will, after drug screening, test positive, is required to notify the department personnel unit of said fact. The officer shall also provide the personnel unit with a certificate by the prescribing physician that the type and/or prescribed dosage of said medication usage should not significantly interfere or affect the officer’s police performance. If the type and/or dosage of prescribed medication do not allow the prescribing physician to so certify the officer’s performance, said officer may request the physician to list any limitations to normal police duties on said certificate. In the event the prescribing physician is unwilling or unable to provide such certification or description of limitations, the officer shall nevertheless advise the police personnel unit that they have been provided with a prescription which may result in a positive testing. Upon receipt of information limiting an officer’s normal police duties, the personnel unit shall immediately notify the chief of police of said limitation(s) and request a light duty assignment consistent with said limitation(s). The department shall take all legal and reasonable steps to provide appropriate light duty assignments and preserve the confidentiality of the medical information provided.

Information received, pursuant to the above, need not specify what illness or injury is being treated, nor need the certificate specify what medication is being taken except as required to alert the department to positive drug screening results.

  1. Procedure

A.  All testing, pursuant to this policy, shall be conducted by Regions Hospital staff under the auspices of the Occupation Health Services Office. Collection shall be done in such a manner as to preserve the dignity of the officer tested, ensure the integrity of the sample, and provide the highest possible accuracy of the clinical results.

When an officer has, pursuant to Section I, been requested or ordered to submit to drug testing, the officer will be given an acknowledgement form stating that the officer has seen this “Drug and Alcohol Screening Policy”. The acknowledgement form can be found on the intranet under department forms in the “other” section. The officer shall be transported to the testing site.

The officer will next be asked to provide a urine sample. Each officer will be accompanied to a rest room by a supervisory officer or hospital staff member of the same sex to ensure that no contamination or dilution to the sample occurs.

Once obtained, the sample bottle will be capped and a tamper-proof seal placed over the cap. The officer will initial the paper label on the bottle and sign a Chain of Custody Form indicating that the urine sample is their own and that the bottle was sealed in their presence. The supervisory officer will then certify on the Chain of Custody Form the date that the urine sample was collected, that the sample was duly sealed and that the sample bottle bears the initials of the officer submitting the sample. The sealed sample bottle will immediately be placed under refrigeration pending actual laboratory analysis.

If an initial screen of an officer’s urine sample tests negative for alcohol or drugs, the results will be reported back to the department and the urine sample will be discarded. If the sample tests positive for alcohol or drugs, the urine sample will be immediately subject to confirmation testing. The specific confirmation test(s) will be determined by the specific drug that tested positive in the initial screen. The department will inform the officer of test results within three working days after receipt of the test result report form the laboratory. An officer may also request a copy of the test result report.

In those cases where the second test confirms the presence of an alcohol or drug in the sample, an officer may request a confirmatory retest of the original sample at the officer’s own expense. The sample will be retained in a locked freezer for six months to allow for further testing by the officer in case of a dispute. An officer has the right to explain a positive test result. The department may request that the officer indicate any over-the-counter or prescription medication that the individual is currently taking or has recently taken and any other information relevant to the reliability of, or explanation for, a positive test result.

Nothing in this policy shall be interpreted or construed to mean that an officer subject to testing may not obtain independent or alternative testing at their own expense and initiative.

The following chemical substances will be tested for:

    • Alcohol - Ethyl
    • Cocaine
    • Marijuana (THC - Metabolite)
    • Amphetamines
    • Opiates

B.  For the purpose of testing officer judgment, fitness and readiness for duty, the inspection unit shall be responsible for selecting a date, twice each calendar year, in which members of the inspection unit will visit a S.W.A.T., bomb squad, or crisis negotiators training site, and/or conduct a call-up of the units identified in Section I. A. of this general order. During this time, members of the units will be asked to submit to a drug and alcohol screening test.

C.  If an officer has a reasonable basis to believe that another officer is illegally using drugs or on duty under the influence of drugs or alcohol, the officer shall notify the suspect officer’s supervisor or watch commander immediately and furnish the name and current assignment of the suspected member, along with all of the facts and circumstances which led to the belief.

  • In all cases in which the belief that an officer is on duty under the influence of drugs or alcohol is based upon observations of the suspected officer, two supervisory rank personnel are required to observe the suspected officer and concur that a reasonable basis exists to believe the officer is under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
  • Any supervisor or watch commander who is so informed of suspected illegal or improper drug or alcohol use shall notify the division commander or, in their absence, the on-call assistant chief and advise the assistant chief or on-call assistant chief of all facts and circumstances which led to the belief that the suspected officer is illegally using drugs or under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
  • If the information is that the officer is currently on duty and under the influence of drugs or alcohol and the assistant chief agrees that the facts and circumstances reported to them are sufficient to provide a reasonable basis to believe that the officer is under the influence of drugs or alcohol, testing shall immediately be ordered and conducted.
  • The employee may request that testing may initially consist of a “Preliminary Breath Test” (PBT) that will be conducted at either the district or a suitable location in the workplace, or an intoxilyzer test for alcohol at the Ramsey County Law Enforcement Center.
  • The employee may request a union representative at the PBT as long as it is requested within a reasonable amount of time and does not interfere with the timing of the test.
  • Prior to being transported to the testing site, the officer’s firearms, holster, magazines, duty belt and other weapons shall be secured.
  • If a PBT shows a positive result, the employee may request an intoxilyzer test for alcohol at the Law Enforcement Center.
  • The employee may request a union representative at the intoxilyzer test as long as it is requested within a reasonable amount of time and does not significantly interfere with the timing of the test.
  • If alcohol testing is conducted with immediate negative results, the officer’s equipment may be returned as soon as feasible.
  • If there is to be a delay of drug testing results, the return of the equipment belt shall be determined by the assistant chief of the employee’s division or on-call assistant chief.
  • If a PBT, or intoxilyzer test if requested by the employee shows a positive result, the employee will be directed to submit to laboratory testing as outlined in paragraph II.A. above.
  • If the information is that the officer is not currently under the influence of alcohol or drugs, but that the officer is illegally involved in drugs or drug usage, an investigation to verify the facts or circumstance shall begin. Testing may or may not be included, dependent upon the course of the investigation, provided, however, that if testing is ordered, it shall occur only if there is a reasonable basis to believe that the officer is involved in the usage of illegal drugs.
  • All personnel shall immediately document any and all information received, observations, and actions taken. All reports shall be forwarded to the internal affairs unit. No copies shall be retained by any other person or unit, unless directed by an assistant chief.

D.  Any officer who, as part of their police duties or through off-duty social contact, ingests either directly or indirectly any drug or narcotic substance that would or may test positive after drug screening, is required to document, as soon as possible thereafter, such contact. Documentation should occur if the contact occurred in an on-duty setting. Contact occurring through off-duty social activity should be documented on an internal memo to the employee assistance program.

Revised February 1, 2019

Last Edited: July 22, 2020