NYPD Officer Blames Testing Positive for Meth on Wearing Shorts on the Job

An NYPD officer known for his love of shorts has been fired for methamphetamine, the New York Daily News reports. 

Officer Brian "Legs" Quire was terminated from his position on February 16. He had claimed his bare legs were exposed to the dangerous drug while on the job.

Hair from Quire's legs were examined for substances during a random drug testing last year. Quire's lawyer is now arguing that the test, which came up positive, can not differentiate between accidental exposure and purposeful usage.

“A hair test can effectively determine whether or not the hair has been exposed to a drug but it cannot determine whether or not that exposure came from contact with the drug or from internal ingestion,” said Quire's attorney, Yetta Kurland. “We absolutely want to make sure we don’t have police officers who are using drugs, but we equally want to make sure we use proper testing so we don’t destroy the careers of good police officers, like Detective Quire.”

The NYPD, which began using this specific hair test around 20 years ago, has claimed this form of inspection is both more reliable and cost-effective than urine tests.

Quire was both demoted and charged by Police Commissioner James O’Neill following the positive test results.

In court, Quire's colleagues have testified that he had never acted like he was under the influence of any drugs.

Another NYPD officer, Lt. Kurt Lewis of the Bronx, has also claimed he is the victim of a false positive drug test. Lewis had tested postive for steroids.

An unnamed source claimed that Lewis's protein shakes had an effect on the drug test.

“These powders, workout shakes, are legal,” the source said. “But they can lead to false positives. We have to see the results from the department and send them to a private lab.”

In Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania police have resisted mandatory drug testing, according to a 2015 WPXI report.

Police had attempted to argue that mandatory drug testing amounted to illegal search and seizure and was an infringement on their constitutional rights.

“[Police] don't forfeit their constitutional rights to protect the city from a civil liability,” attorney Bryan Campbell had attempted to argue.

[Photo: Facebook]