There are a number of new drugs that fall under the category of "Bath Salts". By the time I was out of work injured, since June 2012, until I retired May 2013 these were newer drugs that I had not attended any courses/training on, though info should be readily available on the web.
Once the Chief knew I was planning on retiring, he didn't send me to any new courses except updates mandated by the AG.
Some articles, as I've heard, have included methamphetamine in the category of Bath Salts due to it's likeness in shape, form and appearance, but meth has been around alot longer than these new drugs and wasn't originally the target of this new category. The problem with these new range of drugs (bath salts) is that, like "Ecstasy" they are usually cooked up in home labs that aren't exactly controlled chemistry environments. The "cooking" process is quite complex and elaborate as I understand and if one single step in the process is done improperly (pressure control, temperature control, moisture control, cook time, etc., etc.) you end up with a bad drug that can kill someone or fry their brain permanently.
That's not even including those who may have an anaphylactic reaction to, a physical or mental predisposition toward, or a susceptibility to the drugs and it's various derivatives as well as the botched batches that make it to the street.
When I hear about Bath Salts, I recall a News story about a face eater in Florida. Despite not attending any courses about these drugs, I do get information from others who had received the training & updates. They would tell me of similar events that they either were directly involved with, or had been told during schooling by others who were directly involved. All those behavioral horrors stories I heard were similar to the face eating man from Florida.
Now, I read in the News how there were "
No bath Salts Found/Only Marijuana" in the blood of the face-eating man but, what kills me is that according to what I have heard among the Law Enforcement community, there is no known test that has yet been developed to detect some of these "Bath Salts" drugs in a person's system. So, the News article, though maybe true, leaves out some very pertinent and requisite facts.
"
A second forensic toxicology lab also confirmed the absence of the most common ingredients of bath salts, a synthetic amphetamine cocktail blamed in several recent incidents that bear some similarity to Eugene's attack.
"Within the limits of current technology by both laboratories," the statement read, "marijuana is the only drug identified in the body of Mr. Rudy "
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/0...n_1632253.html
There is a grayed area in the article that mildly alludes to the lack of tests for these Bath Salts, but it certainly doesn't say it the way I heard it through the law enforcement community.