The Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee (GTSC) is accepting applications for Drug Recognition Expert (DRE) School.  This training teaches law enforcement officers how to detect those impaired by drugs operating motor vehicles.  The first phase of the training starts the week of Aug. 17-28 in Batavia, N.Y., with applications due by the close of business on Monday, June 15.

“Drugged driving is a growing problem in New York and nationwide, resulting in traffic crashes that often cause serious injuries and deaths,” said DMV Deputy Commissioner Terri Egan. “Keeping our roadways as safe as possible for the motoring public is of paramount importance and I commend GTSC for making this training available to law enforcement officers statewide to help them recognize the signs of drug impairment in drivers.”

The involvement of drugs is a serious issue in fatal crashes in New York State, with nearly one out of five fatalities (18 percent) being drug-related. Drug-related personal injury crashes have also been on an upward trend and have increased 21 percent between 2007 and 2012. This upward trend illustrates the importance of having properly trained law enforcement officers to detect drug impairment on our roadways. Detecting and analyzing a driver for drug impairment takes special training and knowledge. A fully trained Drug Recognition Expert (DRE) is highly skilled at using indicators to determine the impairment for either illegal substances or prescription drugs.

To be considered for DRE training, which is paid for by the Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee, an applicant must have a minimum of two years of law enforcement service, be off probation with his or her agency and have successfully completed the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Standardized Field Sobriety Testing (SFST) Training. Applicants also must have successfully completed the classroom version of Advanced Roadside Impaired Driving Enforcement (ARIDE) training within the past five years and have a reasonable background and experience level of making DWI arrests. 

This challenging and intensive DRE training program runs over 14 days, for a total of 120 hours. The academic training has two components: a two-day Pre-School program that prepares officers for the seven-day DRE School. Students must successfully pass a Standardized Field Sobriety Testing (SFST) proficiency exam and a written exam to advance to the DRE School.

Students in the Field Certification phase, under the supervision of Drug Recognition Instructors, will be required to complete a minimum of 12 evaluations on drug impaired individuals and correctly identify subjects under the influence of four of the seven drug categories. Students must also keep a progress log, rolling log and submit a comprehensive resume.

At the end of Field Certification, the student receives a two year certification after passing the Comprehensive Final Knowledge Examination. DRE officers must meet certain requirements to be considered for re-certification at the end of this period.

Interested officers must submit a completed application, and supporting documentation, directly to GTSC via fax, email or U.S. Mail. Applications must be received at GTSC by close of business on Monday, June 15, 2015. The application can be found at: http://safeny.ny.gov/DRE/dre-web/forms-dre.htm 

Incomplete or late applications will not be considered.