Imagine this: you see a checkpoint ahead flashing lights as you are driving home with the setting sun in your rearview mirror.  Sensing anything is wrong, an officer looks concentrated on the driver before you.  Is it a drink, alcohol?  Medication?  Something else quite different?  Here is where a Drug Recognition Expert (DRE) responds—a uniform-trained detective looking for obscure indicators of impairment.

These professionals are not your typical cops.  They receive specific instruction to identify the faintest traces of impact.  Did you notice that stumble?  A brief, anxious motion?  They read these signals with the dexterity of a poker player interpreting faces.  It is a clever mix of intuition and observation, not alone science.

Their approach is fundamentally based on a twelve-step assessment procedure akin to a medical checkup mixed with investigative inquiry.  Searching for hints buried in plain sight, they assess everything from eye motions to equilibrium.  The body speaks in its own language, which is much like spotting a sour note in a melody—fluency in it is natural.

To be honest, though, this work is not always perfect sailing.  It calls both keen observational abilities and scientific accuracy.  Imagine a detective uncovering the mystery of drug influence with both poise and knowledge in uniform rather than in trench coat.

Stakes?  really high.  A bad call could have major effects.  Like attempting to catch fish in an empty pond.  Even the most seasoned DREs come into difficult circumstances in which every decision counts.

Think about the cop behind the badge, someone like you, connecting the dots to keep everyone safe, the next time you pass a checkpoint.  Not to mention, a little gratitude for these unsung heroes might go a big further.