American Chemical Society AMA: Hi Reddit! I’m Kevin Shanks, a Senior Forensic Toxicologist with AIT Laboratories/Axis Forensic Toxicology. Ask me anything about forensic science!

Abstract

Hi Reddit, and Happy National Chemistry Week! This year's theme is "Solving Mysteries through Chemistry" so I’m here to answer your questions about forensic chemistry and how science plays a key role in criminal investigations. I'm Kevin Shanks, a Senior Forensic Toxicologist with Axis Forensic Toxicology, a forensic toxicology laboratory in the Midwest USA. My areas of expertise include liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LC/MS, LC/MS/MS, LC/ToF) and the analytical detection and toxicology of new psychoactive substances (NPS) such as substituted cathinones (bath salts), synthetic cannabinoids (spice/K2), NBOME hallucinogens, fentanyl analogs, and opioid research chemicals. I oversee all method development and validation of analytical methods for NPS at Axis and have provided fact and expert witness testimony in drug chemistry, human performance toxicology, and postmortem toxicology matters in numerous states. I hold a B.A in Biology from Franklin College in Franklin, Indiana, an M.S. in Forensic Toxicology from the University of Florida, and am certified as a Diplomate of the American Board of Forensic Toxicology in forensic toxicology. I also have published papers on the analytical detection and postmortem toxicology of synthetic cannabinoids (i.e. JWH-018, 5F-PB-22, ADB-FUBINACA, and 5F-AMB) as well as the detection of designer substances in pills, powders, and plant materials. I have presented research and casework at national meetings such as the Society of Forensic Toxicologists annual conference. My most recent projects include the analytical and forensic toxicology of fentanyl analogs, such as carfentanil and furanylfentanyl, and their emergence in the United States’ heroin supply. Ask me anything about drugs, poisons, newly emerging substances, life in a forensic laboratory, postmortem toxicology, and analytical chemistry. I’ll be back at 2:00 pm ET (11:00 am PT) to answer your questions. EDIT: I'm online now (came on early) and will begin answering questions soon. Just as a disclaimer, many of the answers are my opinions and do not reflect the thoughts and views of my company/lab. Also, because of the nature of the work, I cannot discuss active casework and also may not answer questions which could lead to illegal or criminal activity. -KGS EDIT: Thanks for all the awesome questions! I'm still answering questions. Going to try to get to as many of these as possible. -KGS EDIT: I have to log off for now. It's been fun answering questions! I'll be back around 6 pm ET (3 pm PT) to answer some more questions. -KGS EDIT: I've logged back on for a bit to answer some more questions. -KGS EDIT: I'm logging back off. This has been a lot of fun. And I'm happy that there have been many excellent questions. I'll log in one more time later to try to answer more questions. Look for that around 8 pm ET (5 pm PT). EDIT: I've had fun. Hope I was able to answer some questions for you. I wish I could have answered all the questions. Thanks to the ACS for having me do this. -KGS