RWU forensics professor discusses drug detection, classification Friday

By: Jeff Sullivan

Posted: 4/2/08

04/02/08 - Gino Rebussini, an adjunct professor of forensic science at Roger Williams University, offered his expertise on the subjects of drug detection, classification and slang at a forensics lecture in Pastore Hall last Friday.

Rebussini, recently retired from the state Department of Health, worked as the supervisor of the Forensic Science Laboratory for 31 years before retiring.

Rebussini discussed forensic science's new role and how it's becoming more like studying law than other applied sciences, especially when it comes to illegal or controlled substances.

"We have to do things a lot differently than what we'd do in a regular hospital, because our stuff goes to court all the time," he said. "That's the only difference between regular analytical chemistry compared to forensic science, because it is science applied to the law."

Rebussini said that because of the three-part dynamic in the state processing system between the police, the courts and forensics laboratories, there can always be some confusion. Because they are separate institutions, it's like one hand not knowing what the other is doing, he said.

"You have three-fold purpose in which each one needs each other, but no one [department] knows what the other is doing," Rebussini said. "It's a constant learning experience in trying to pull all three fields together."

Rebussini's responsibilities during his time at the Forensic Drug Laboratory varied from managing chemical testing to testifying in all tiers of the Rhode Island court system more than 600 times.

He is currently putting together support for forensic science curricula in both private and public high schools across the state to increase awareness of the field.

"We're constantly learning new things," he said. "Why? Because the bad guys are getting smarter. They're making new drugs, new poisons out there that are killing. Scientists have to figure out what they're making, even if we don't have it in our computer banks."

Rebussini said one of these new synthetic drugs is an opiate concentrate, referred to on the street as "China white." It is 6,682 times more powerful than heroin, making the weight of a dose infinitely smaller and transportation much easier in large quantities.

He added that the drug's characteristics also make a dose miscalculation or overdose much more probable.

"This stuff, one grain of salt cut in fours would kill you," he said. "[Dealers] get one ounce of China white and [cut it] 6,682 times evenly with magnetic stirrers. A couple thousand dollar investment turns into a billion dollar profit on the street."

One of the most useful items he discussed is the gas chromatograph, which vaporizes any substance to separate different compounds. Usually the machine is used to detect substances in a urine or blood sample in a forensics lab, but he said there are many other applications.

He also discussed the training methods of drug detecting K-9 officers, most notably the safeguards put in place to prevent a suspect from turning the dog on its master. Most of the time, the dogs are trained in a foreign language that is not prevalent in the region of operation.