Assemblyman Tom Lackey
Assemblyman Tom Lackey (R-Palmdale), a former 28-year veteran of the California Highway Patrol, introduced state legislation today that would authorize use of roadside drug testing devices for evaluating drivers stopped under suspicion of driving under the influence.
The proposed law takes on new importance in wake of California voters approving Proposition 64 to allow marijuana for recreational use.
“The ballot initiative passed this year to legalize marijuana will result in more marijuana consumers on our state’s highways and roads. It is imperative that we invest in a broad spectrum of technologies and research to best identify marijuana-impaired drivers,” said Chief Ken Corney, President of the California Police Chiefs Association. “Our federal partners have demonstrated the efficacy of oral fluid testing, and we look forward to utilizing the technology at a state level.”
Statistics from states with legalized recreational marijuana show that drugged driving is a significant problem. A 2016 report from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety found that Washington’s rate of drivers who had recently used marijuana and were involved in fatal crashes doubled from 8% to 17% in the first year following legalization. It also found that one in six drivers involved in fatal crashes had recently used marijuana.
“California cannot wait any longer to take meaningful action against drugged driving now that voters have passed Proposition 64,” said Lackey. “Using new technology to identify and get stoned drivers off the road is something we need to embrace.”
Similar to alcohol breathalyzers, these drug tests take saliva samples from drivers which can be administered non-invasively by officers roadside when they suspect someone could be under the influence of drugs. Within a few minutes, officers are informed whether the driver tested positive for several classifications of drugs including marijuana.
The legislation was introduced as Assembly Bill 6 and will be brought up for a vote in early 2017.
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12 Comments
But your aloud to drive while on oxcotyin or some other prescribed narcotic
Actually Jeff, you are not allowed to drive under the influence of any “drug” and that includes prescribed narcotics. I am a paramedic and have witnessed many people placed under arrest for driving under the influence of their prescribed pain medications.
That’s news to me
So if you’re on pain meds supposed to be in bed wow
No, you can do anything you would like and are able to tolerate (given the pain you are in), you just are not allowed to be behind the wheel of a vehicle.
Cmon CA Assembly, Just Say No
Yup, all part of how the government will profit from weed. Now pound your coffee on the way to the gas station for a red bull, snickers and a cigarette then hit the road you legal drug addict
Same thing happened in Colorado where MJ related DUIs jumped up over 700% after legalization.
How about we regularly test Political & Business leaders &
Law enforcement?
Why do you need a law to tell you if you are unable to drive? I would never drive after more than one drink. I don’t use pot but would not drive the same day after I smoked it if I did. if I am taking a pain pill or any other medication (even allergy med)that affects me I don’t drive for my own safety and others. Where is your personal responsibility people.
They should do that outside every bar and nightclub if that’s the case. ?
Oh my brothers and sisters! Listen to the tale of woe that I sing to you now.
Marijuana use goes back to the beginning of the previous century (or further; our Founding Fathers grew Hemp, probably for rope. But it’s still Hemp – and it’s illegal to grow it in the USA now). So does the use of codeine, it’s a derivative of opium, just like heroin and was so popular for many years. And then there is Dr Freud’s use of cocaine, the wonder drug a century ago. We know better now, and as a wonder drug – not so much.
Modern science now knows that a person under the influence of these drugs – and/or alcohol – has serious liabilities when it comes to both cognition and motor control. That means thinking, and acting (as in driving a car).
Laws that serve to make these substances illegal to have and use do not seem to have had any real affect on said access and use.
The War on Drugs has yet to prove any success on limiting access to prohibited substances in this country. It has been extremely successful in two ways: first it has created a giant governmental bureaucracy funded by billions of dollars to fight the evil drugs. Second it has “allowed” the sources of those drugs to become multi-million dollar businesses, some of whom are or have gone legit (to a large degree) and become major economic players in our hemisphere.
And you will not be able to find any data that shows the 45 year old War on Drugs has reduced drug use in this country. Yes, there will be many reports, studies, and other self-serving puff pieces that will trumpet “Victory” but none will show real change. Much less improvement.
But the numbers don’t lie, even if the local drug abuse center does really good work in your neighborhood. Opiates (legal versions of heroin) are the number one cause of drug deaths in many states of the USA.
It’s all about the money. There are “schedule” drugs that have been declared either dangerous or addictive that are illegal to sell or own in the USA. Most Opiates are on this list. But the USA based drug manufacturers can still make those drugs right here. They just have to sell them in other countries. Or, perhaps onto the black market. Through subsidiaries and second tier marketers of course.
Why else can you go to Mexico and buy over-the-counter drugs that are illegal here even with a prescription?
I’m not saying that Cannabis use is a good thing, or a bad thing all by itself. You wanna go get high and lay on your bed/sofa/chaise lounge at home? Fine. Just stay off MY streets.
You feel the need to drop by a downtown LA brick building and pickup a dime bag of smack? I pity you, and I’d like to see you get some help to stop that self-destruction. There are lots of non-governmental organizations that will help you. But if not, OK go ahead and slide it on in and dream on.
But you need to understand one thing – I believe you have the right to go to hell in your own way, on your own time. But not the right to rob me, kill me, or try to take away my rights to live a safe life – in any way.