Many people are saying police should test drugs at venues where young people go - clubs, concerts and the like.
Is this really a good idea?
Let's explore the implications of pill testing.
First, if police assist with testing illicit drugs then they are implicitly condoning the use of illicit drugs. This would be a difficult and risky thing for police to do. Police are meant to uphold the law, and drug taking - I think everyone will agree - is against the law. This places police in a very difficult position: appearing to condone the very thing they are meant to condemn.
Secondly, testing machines are expensive - very expensive. The costs tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of dollars each. How many will need to be purchased? Multiple machines may be required at busy venues to avoid long queues. The machines also require specialist operators to use them. Who's going to pay for all that? I certainly don't want that coming out of my taxes!!
Also to test a pill it has to be ground up and placed in the testing machine. This will destroy the pill. Will people expect to be compensated for the cost of the destroyed pill?
Thirdly, there will inevitably be situations where a particular pill is deemed "safe" after it has been tested (whatever that means), and it is then consumed by a young person who develops a severe reaction to the pill, and possibly dies. It may be because of other drugs/medication they are taking, or it may be the first time they're taking this particular drug, or some other reason. Who will wear this responsibility - will the police and/or tester be liable for causing the death of this young person? God forbid we should hold the person who supplied the pill in the first place (i.e. the drug dealer) liable!
It is obvious to me that pill testing is a seriously flawed proposal.
Here's an 'out there' idea - educate young people about the dangers of illicit drugs (which is why they're illicit!), and teach them to have a good time without being zonked out of their brains.
