Can a person who has used illegal drugs become a peace officer in Arizona?

Arizona POST is concerned with past illegal drug use because it demonstrates a willingness or propensity to do illegal things. It shows a lack of respect for the law. At the same time, AZPOST recognizes that many people experiment with marijuana or other drugs in their youth. Therefore, the AZPOST standard for pre-employment illegal drug use is “experimentation.” An applicant may not have used drugs other than for experimentation. The rule defines experimentation by stating presumptive levels of use that are experimentation. Any use over those presumptive numbers can only be determined to be experimental by the Board through a petition from the agency asking the Board to look at all the facts and circumstances of use and see whether the use was experimental as opposed to, for example, recreational. The numbers are divided by age and type of drug. Illegal marijuana use is presumed to be experimental if the numbers do not exceed 20 in a lifetime, with no more than five of those uses being at age 21 or older. Narcotics and dangerous drugs as defined by A.R.S. §13-3401 are presumed to be experimental if the illegal usage does not exceed five in a lifetime, with no more than one of those uses being at age 21 or older. There are also time limits prior to application within which no illegal use of any character is allowed — three years for marijuana and seven years for dangerous drugs or narcotics. Applicants’ answers to all background questions are tested and verified by polygraph.