The class was designed for first responders who come into
contact with people suspected of taking synthetic drugs - and
teaching them how they should react. "We're trained to just hog-
tie them, contain them so they don't hurt anyone else. But if
its the wrong process, then actually what happens is they're not
able to breathe correctly, they're not able to get the right
blood flow, renal failure occurs, so it's about giving them the
idea and tools so they can prevent somebody from dying in
custody," says Jackie Long, Homeland Security guest lecturer.
Long says many of the chemical compounds they see were developed
in Europe as potential pain medication. He says they were
designed to be used in research but when used on the street,
people are playing with "chemical fire."