Clandestine Methamphetamine Laboratories

Meth Labs – Best Practice Protocol

meth lab sample packaging 1
Samples are collected into glass vials and placed into plastic bottles.

The 2005 General Assembly enacted legislation addressing the illegal manufacture of methamphetamine. This legislation included language requiring the development of two sets of best practices protocols; the first for use by law-enforcement and emergency response agencies regarding the clean-up of abandoned and deactivated methamphetamine production sites, and the second addressing the retention and handling of the by-products of methamphetamine production after testing is conducted on behalf of law-enforcement officials. (See 2005 Acts of Assembly Chapters 759, 796, 923 and 941). The Department of Forensic Science was one of many agencies assigned to the work group tasked with developing the first protocol by September 1, 2005, and was the lead agency tasked with developing and implementing the second protocol by September 1, 2005. To provide agencies with the best guidance possible in responding to illegal methamphetamine production sites, the work group decided to merge the two protocols.

These protocols have been incorporated into the DFS Evidence Handling Guide Section II-5.

meth lab packaging 2
All samples for one case are placed into a 5 gallon bucket with vermiculite for transportation to the laboratory.