DUI Laws Problematic When It Comes to Legal Drugs

 Posted on August 14,2014 in DUI

Despite a decades-long "war" on drugs in the U.S., drugs continue to be an issue that plague our streets and our highways. According to the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (NCADD), more than 15 percent of nighttime, weekend drivers tested positive for illegal, prescription, or OTV medications. More than 10 percent tested positive for illegal drugs. Of fatally injured drivers in 2009, nearly 20 percent tested positive for at least one type of drug at the time of death. The number of people who died as a result of a drugged driver is even more sobering: nearly 4,000 drivers who were killed in 2009 were on drugs.

The issue of drugged driving continues to lag statistically behind driving under the influence of alcohol, but this could change as more states move toward relaxed legal policies regarding drug use and legalize marijuana. A number of states, including Illinois, have introduced per-se laws in an attempt to quantify and punish drugged drivers. Reported by StopDruggedDriving.org, the Obama Administration has pinpointed per-se laws as a major initiative. StopDruggedDriving.com reports that, "per-se means that any detectable amount of a controlled substance, other than a medicine prescribed by a physician for that driver in a driver’s body fluids, constitutes per se evidence of a ‘drugged driving’ violation."

Per-se laws, of course, are problematic. Many drugs, including marijuana, which is now legal for recreational use in two states, tend to stay in a person’s system long after the effects of the drug have worn off. This ostensibly means that a person could legally buy and smoke marijuana in Colorado, drive back to Illinois three days later, and be arrested for drugged driving while on the way to work.

If you or someone you know has been arrested for DUI in Chicago, the most important step is to contact an experienced Rolling Meadows DUI attorney. Call Scott F. Anderson Attorney at Law, for a free initial consultation today.