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Changes in key international cocaine market indicators point to the highest U.S. cocaine supply levels since at least 2007. National data also show the most significant increase in domestic cocaine usage since at least 2009. Recent cocaine production and U.S. Transit Zone movement indicators have reached the highest levels ever observed.a Cocaine supply and usage in the United States is rising and will likely continue to expand in the near term based upon a body of rising indicators, though some usage indicators may increase at slower rates than others. Barring a significant shift in the Government of Colombia’s (GOC) policies, drug trafficking organization (DTO) behavior, or U.S. drug consumer preferences, this trend is likely to amplify through at least 2018. 

The King County Medical Examiner’s Office (KCMEO) reported that deaths caused by drugs increased to their highest levels in 2016 in King County, Washington. Methamphetamine was responsible for 109 (30 percent) of the 360 drug deaths according to KCMEO data. DEA reporting indicates that the methamphetamine responsible for the overdose deaths was produced in Mexico and smuggled across the Southwest Border (SWB) to the Pacific Northwest. Recently, methamphetamine users have begun combining the drug with heroin—a combination that has led to a substantial increase in deaths in King County—according to an analysis of KCMEO data. 

A recent enforcement operation by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Indianapolis District Office (IDO) resulted in the seizure of 970 purported prescription pills that were various shades of blue and appeared to be oxycodone. Laboratory analysis subsequently revealed that the pills were counterfeit; the dark blue pills contained carfentanil and the light blue pills contained fentanyl. Fentanyl is a Schedule II opioid analgesic approximately 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine. Carfentanil is a Schedule II substance, similar in structure to fentanyl, with an analgesic potency 10,000 times that of morphine and is used in veterinary practice to immobilize certain large animals, including elephants. Both can be fatal in very small amounts. 

Documenting the administration of naloxone in New Orleans, LA, is one way to determine the amount of heroin being abused in the city. Naloxone, sold under the name Narcan®, is a medication used to counter the effects of heroin and opioid overdoses. Naloxone is typically administered by first responders and can reverse the depression of the central nervous system, respiratory system and hypotension caused by an overdose. In calendar years (CYs) 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2016, Orleans Parish Emergency Medical Services documented 3,467 administrations of naloxone (655, 920, 980, and 912 for the respective years). 

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is in the midst of an unprecedented epidemic of drug abuse and drug-related overdose deaths impacting every corner of the state and all of its residents. In 2016, more than 4,600 Pennsylvanians died as a result of drug abuse, with thousands more affected by addiction, either personally, or through family, friends, and loved ones.

Demetra Ashley, Acting Assistant Administrator of Diversion Control Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, and Investigations, Committee on the Judiciary U.S. House Of Representatives “Stop The Importation and Trafficking of Synthetic Analogues Act of 2017”

The King County Medical Examiner’s (KCME) Office reported that deaths caused by drugs increased to their highest levels in 2016 in both Seattle and King County, Washington. The majority (63 percent) of the 360 deaths were caused by opioids. The opioids responsible for the overdose deaths were opium derivatives such as morphine and heroin, but also included oxycodone, hydrocodone, and methadone. In addition, synthetic opioids such as fentanyl, fentanyl-related compounds, and U-47700 were also found. 

Drugs of Abuse delivers clear, scientific information about drugs in a factual, straightforward way. With the information in this guide, parents and caregivers can help their children make smart choices and avoid the consequences of drug abuse. This publication covers topics including the Controlled Substances Act and introduces drug classes including narcotics, stimulants, marijuana/cannabis, inhalants, steroids, and more.  Drugs of Abuse also provides information about drugs of concern and designer drugs, including synthetic opioids and  “bath salts.”

Chicago has a long history of organized crime and is home to numerous street gangs that use the illegal drug trade to build their criminal enterprises. Although the murder rate in Chicago has declined significantly since the 1990s, recent instances of gang-related homicides have placed Chicago’s crime situation in the national spotlight. Compounding Chicago’s crime problem is a steady supply of drugs from Mexican drug cartels, most notably the Sinaloa Cartel. Illicit drugs flow from Mexico to Chicago via a loosely associated network of profit-driven intermediaries, with Chicago street gangs serving as the primary distributors at the street level. The profits earned through drug trafficking increase the staying power of both street gangs and drug trafficking organizations (DTOs), thereby influencing levels of violent crime in both the United States and Mexico. Of particular concern is the trafficking and distribution of heroin, which has increased significantly in recent years and caused significant harm to communities in Chicago and throughout the United States. This report provides background on the gang-related crime situation in Chicago and offers insight on the nexus between Mexican DTOs and Chicago street gangs. 

All available indicators—including investigative intelligence, case initiations, seizure and arrest data, abuse indicators, and anecdotal information—indicate that opioids present the greatest illegal drug threat to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Chicago Field Division (CFD), which encompasses the states of Indiana, Minnesota, North Dakota, Wisconsin, and the Northern and Central U.S. Federal Judicial Districts in Illinois. Although this threat is affecting urban and suburban areas most severely, it has been expanding throughout almost every state. 

The King County Medical Examiner’s (KCME) Office reported that deaths caused by drugs increased to their highest levels in 2016 in both Seattle and King County, Washington. The majority (63 percent) of the 360 deaths were caused by opioids. The opioids responsible for the overdose deaths were opium derivatives such as morphine and heroin, but also included oxycodone, hydrocodone, and methadone. In addition, synthetic opioids such as fentanyl, fentanyl-related compounds, and U-47700 were also found. 

This Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Intelligence Report contains information from a variety of law enforcement and open sources. It is designed as a ready reference for law enforcement personnel who are confronted by many of the hundreds of slang terms used to identify a wide variety of controlled substances, designer drugs, and synthetic compounds. Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy and completeness of the information presented. However, due to the dynamics of the ever-changing drug scene, subsequent additions, deletions, and corrections are inevitable. Further addendums to this report will attempt to capture changed terminology, to the extent possible. This compendium of drug slang terms has been alphabetically ordered, and identifies drugs and drug categories in English and foreign language derivations. 

Drug abuse and trafficking, particularly of opioids, is a critical threat to West Virginia. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report that there was a statistically significant increase (16.9 percent) in drug overdose deaths in West Virginia between 2014 and 2015. The state had the highest rate of overdose deaths in the country in 2015, approximately 42 for every 100,000 people; CDC data indicate that 725 people died of drug overdoses in West Virginia in 2015, more than double the number who died from car accidents.

This Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Intelligence Report contains information from a variety of law enforcement and open sources. It is designed as a ready reference for law enforcement personnel who are confronted by many of the hundreds of slang terms used to identify a wide variety of controlled substances, designer drugs, and synthetic compounds. Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy and completeness of the information presented. However, due to the dynamics of the ever-changing drug scene, subsequent additions, deletions, and corrections are inevitable. Further addendums to this report will attempt to capture changed terminology, to the extent possible. This compendium of drug slang terms has been alphabetically ordered, and identifies drugs and drug categories in English and foreign language derivations.

DEA partnered with the U.S. Department of Education to update this publication that was last revised in 2012. This 40-page booklet offers information to help parents and other caregivers raise drug-free children. The guide includes an overview of substance use among youth; descriptions of substances young people may use; a look at risk factors that may make kids more vulnerable to trying and using drugs, and protective factors to offset those risks; suggestions for how to talk to children about drugs, regardless of their age; and tips on what to do if you suspect your child is using alcohol, tobacco, or other drugs.

Chuck Rosenberg: Before the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security and Investigations Committee on the Judiciary U.S. House of Representatives, for a Hearing on Oversight of the Drug Enforcement Administration

Robert W. Patterson: Before the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform U.S. House of Representatives, for a Hearing Entitled Use of Confidential Informants at ATF and DEA

As of October 2017, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) South Carolina-related National Forensic Laboratory Information System (NFLIS) data show that marijuana submissions indicate it is the second-most submitted illegal substance by incident by South Carolina law enforcement officials 2015. With preliminary reporting from 2016-17, the ranking of marijuana has slightly decreased. 

Louis J. Milione: Before the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Committee on Energy and Commerce United States House of Representatives