[steve-b]

There are at least two gaping holes in the standard rationale for using these tactics in drug cases (”If the police act lawfully by knocking and announcing, the bad guys will flush the evidence.”):

1. Modern forensic chemistry can detect parts-per-billion (and in some cases parts per trillion) of chemicals in water — drops-in-a-swimming-pool level. Ergo, flushing wouldn’t actually get rid of evidence; enough traces would remain (even plastic bags leach a bit when dunked in water).

2. Even if the bad guy walks after flushing a large quantity of drugs, he’s still lost the drugs. That’s worse than anything the legal system is likely to do with him, especially if he’s a dealer and owes a percentage of proceeds to his supplier.

[Wonder Warthog]

Concur on both points. And the typical "flush" of the toilet doesn't really empty the whole line leading to the sewer system--it only "moves the deposit" a little further with each flush. Eventually it gets there---but in actual fact, the flushed dope is simply sitting there in the pipe, maybe partially dissolved.

Given the continuing unacceptable level of errors with these types of raids, I think such tactics should be barred except for situations where an active hostage crisis is ongoing.

[An Old Man]

There is absolutely no rational reason for continuing to use the "Toilet Flush" as an excuse for these raids.,p> The drugs or anything else are destined to be located in either the public sewer or in a private septic tank.

In the instance of the private facility, you can dig it up at your leisure. In a public sewer, all one has to do is open the cover on the nearest downhill manhole and throw several sandbags into it to prevert the flow of effluent in the line. Again, one can recover the goods in a leisurely manner.