Journal of analytical toxicology
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Although not used clinically in North America, etizolam has been identified in forensic samples as an illicit, "designer" benzodiazepine. Having central nervous system (CNS) depressant effects, analysis for etizolam has probative value in both death investigations and in forensic cases where incapacitation or human psychomotor performance are relevant. This report examines toxicological findings and demographic data in a series of authentic forensic cases analyzed between November 2019 and December 2020 in which etizolam was quantified by LC-MS/MS analysis. ⋯ In all but one case, other drugs were detected in combination with etizolam. Fentanyl was the most common co-occurring drug and was present in 164 cases (86%). Additional case details are provided for cases of forensic interest: two deaths involving children under three years of age, two deaths involving body-packing, and an individual arrested for drug-impaired driving with, to our knowledge, the highest reported etizolam concentration to date.