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Drugs & DUI Arrest

I WAS NOT DRINKING, WHY WAS I ARRESTED FOR DUI?

Driving under the influence in California includes driving while under the influence of drugs.  The Prosecutor must prove that by being under the influence of the drugs in your system, your ability to safely operate a motor vehicle was impaired.  The drugs in your system can be legal or illegal, even if you have a current and valid prescription for the drug you took before you drove a vehicle.  Some examples of Drug DUI cases include driving with Methamphetamine, Cocaine, Opiates, Marijuana, DXM, Ketamine, PCP, Alprazolam, Ativan, Klonopin, Lorazapam, Valium, Prozac, Paxil, Zoloft, Ritalin, Demerol, Vicodin, Codeine, Xanax and many more. 

In California, when law enforcement notices erratic driving behaviors (see list under FAQ), the officer will initiate a traffic stop.  Next, the officer will observe the driver for any signs of impairment (see list in FAQ).  If the officer observes potential signs of impairment, the officer will administer a PAS (Preliminary Alcohol Screening Device) test.  If the tests yields 0.00% BAC or a low BAC such as 0.04%, but the officer believes the driver is impaired, additional tests may be administered to detect the possibility of different types of drugs in the driver’s system.  Additionally, the driver must submit to a blood test to detect the presence of drugs.   

“DRUGGED DRIVING”

The indicators for alcohol intoxication are much different than those of drug intoxication, which often poses a problem. The officer conducting the DUI investigation up to this point is often not qualified and/or not trained to identify drug symptomology. Consequently, the officer will have to call another officer to the scene who is qualified.  If the officer who arrests the driver for “drugged driving” is not qualified, the defense (YOU!) has the power to stop the officer from testifying at trial. However, since there is an increasing number of drug related DUI cases, often times another expert will be called to the scene to assist in the DUI investigation and conduct additional tests designed to recognize the presence of drugs in the system.  The officer must possess additional qualifications in order to conduct these additional tests and for them to be admissible in a case.  Also known as a, “drug recognition expert,” or DRE, this officer is trained specifically to identify the symptoms of numerous drugs. A qualified DRE can testify at trial as to the symptoms of drugs and the resulting impairments. 

An important fact to note: the issue is not the drug in use, but the impairment it may cause on the driver. “Drugged Driving” cases do not always involve dangerous illegal drugs or narcotics. The drugs used by the suspect could be over-the-counter products (Nyquil or Benadryl, for example) or legally prescribed medicines. The attention is on the driver’s mental stability and physical capabilities.
There are many complications in proving the crime of “driving under the influence of drugs”. Mostly due to a lack of scientific research, the prosecution for these crimes is still a new development.  Even with a blood test, Science is still unable to:

1. Compare the amount of drugs to the amount of impairment caused by them
2. Identify individual tolerance to particular drugs

Therefore, it is very difficult to find an expert who will testify that driving was impaired because of the drugs in the system at the time of driving!!!  This is critical for the prosecution’s case and makes it very difficult for them to prove their case, absent extreme physical signs of impairment by the driver.

Because of these shortages, the prosecution still faces some problems.  If a DRE does not examine the suspect, for example, the prosecution will be unable to determine how the observed symptoms are associated with which drug.  Also, if a blood test is taken, the analysis may be unable to identify which drug was used.  If the results do show a particular drug, the prosecution might not be able to prove if enough of the drug was taken to mentally and physically impair the driver to the point that the driver was not able to safely operate a motor vehicle.