Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Lawmakers worry about rise in drugged driving
The Hill ^ | 07/11/18 | Jasper Goodman

Posted on 07/11/2018 8:16:15 PM PDT by yesthatjallen

Lawmakers on the House Energy and Commerce Committee held a hearing Wednesday on the dangers of drug-impaired driving.

There is growing concern in Congress over the issue as data from the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) and the Foundation for Advancing Alcohol Responsibility finds that accidents from drugged driving have been on the rise over the last 10 years.

A recent report showed that 44 percent of fatally injured drivers tested positive for drugs in 2016. That number is up from 2006, when just 28-percent of fatally injured drivers were drug-positive.

But lawmakers also pressed for more information about the problem.

While the trend appears to be alarming, Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.) raised questions the statistics from the GHSA and the Foundation for Advancing Alcohol Responsibility.

“While this statistic, of course, raises concern, I have questions and concerns about the methodology and accuracy of this statement,” Schakowsky said.

She pointed out that there is no nationally accepted way of testing the drug impairment level of drivers.

“Alcohol continues to cause more deaths than drugs,” Schakowsky said.

Colleen Sheehy-Church, the President of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), who testified at the hearing, agreed.

“The truth is that we do not know how many people are killed each year due to drug-impaired driving,” said Sheehy-Church, whose son was killed by a driver who was under the influence of both alcohol and drugs.

MADD, founded in 1980, advocates against drunk driving. The group says focusing on that problem will also help reduce drug-impaired driving.

Lawmakers and experts also debated the impact of marijuana legalization on the issue. Recreational marijuana is now legal in nine states.

“With the prevalence of marijuana legalization — recreation and medicinal — it is critical that more work be done to understand impairment," Sheehy-Church.

"We agree with the recent AAA [American Automobile Association] study, which states, a .08 [blood alcohol content] equivalent may not be possible with marijuana. But we still must better understand how marijuana impairment influences driving behaviors,” she added.

ETC...


TOPICS: News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: dopeaddicts; drugs; potheads; wod
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-45 next last
To: KC_Conspirator

I’ll tell ya’, you haven’t lived until you’ve operated a 16,000 pound Backhoe after three martinis and two Ambiens.


21 posted on 07/11/2018 11:52:06 PM PDT by gigster (Cogito, Ergo, Ronaldus Magnus Conservatus)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 7 | View Replies]

To: Rj Snows

And it cures *everything*.

/except stupidity


22 posted on 07/12/2018 1:32:44 AM PDT by Salamander (I ride all night and I travel in fear, that in this darkness, I will disappear...)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 5 | View Replies]

To: KC_Conspirator

” but how can you tell if someone is baked? “

Give them a giant bag of Cheetos.


23 posted on 07/12/2018 3:34:33 AM PDT by Gen.Blather
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 7 | View Replies]

To: yesthatjallen

Smart phone drugged driving.


24 posted on 07/12/2018 3:35:19 AM PDT by headstamp 2 (My "White Privilege" is my work ethic.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: yesthatjallen

IIRC, not one single state has established a legal level for THC in drivers. But pot legalization marches on.


25 posted on 07/12/2018 3:55:34 AM PDT by mewzilla (Has the FBI been spying on members of Congress?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: mabarker1
it's good to be the kennedy...
26 posted on 07/12/2018 3:58:28 AM PDT by Chode ( WeÂ’re America, Bitch!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 19 | View Replies]

To: yesthatjallen
From 2014. And I don't recall Obama making an issue about it then...

Pot Fuels Surge in Drugged Driving Deaths

As medical marijuana sales expanded into 20 states, legal weed was detected in the bodies of dead drivers three times more often during 2010 when compared to those who died behind the wheel in 1999...

From 2014.

27 posted on 07/12/2018 4:00:56 AM PDT by mewzilla (Has the FBI been spying on members of Congress?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: yesthatjallen
From the last couple of days, Upstate NY...

Elmira man charged with DWAI for double fatal motorcycle accident

18 YO, and he's killed two people.

28 posted on 07/12/2018 4:22:16 AM PDT by mewzilla (Has the FBI been spying on members of Congress?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: KC_Conspirator

No test that can be done out on the road that I know of. But in an office, yes. I’m not a lawyer and would guess that some level of suspicion would be needed. Maybe a failed field sobriety test? (re. “touch your nose...” etc.) or someone driving 15 mph in a 70 and babbling nonsense during a car stop? It’s been done, though, and much. CO’s been raking in some revenues.


29 posted on 07/12/2018 4:28:27 AM PDT by familyop ("Welcome to Costco. I love you." - -Costco greeter in the movie, "Idiocracy")
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 18 | View Replies]

To: yesthatjallen

Drugged driving among lawmakers?


30 posted on 07/12/2018 4:56:16 AM PDT by Old Yeller (Auto-correct has become my worst enema.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: familyop
From last year. And apologies for the dource...

Everything You Need to Know About Marijuana Blood Tests

"Too stoned to drive"

SNORT.

31 posted on 07/12/2018 4:58:54 AM PDT by mewzilla (Has the FBI been spying on members of Congress?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 29 | View Replies]

To: mewzilla

....source....


32 posted on 07/12/2018 4:59:12 AM PDT by mewzilla (Has the FBI been spying on members of Congress?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 31 | View Replies]

To: mewzilla
And speaking of NYS, from January...

Seen At 11: Loophole Allows Motorists To Drive High In New York State — Legally

33 posted on 07/12/2018 5:03:57 AM PDT by mewzilla (Has the FBI been spying on members of Congress?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 32 | View Replies]

To: yesthatjallen

There are quite a few prescribed non-controlled drugs that are sedating used for pain, neurological conditions that are sedating.

I know some police have used techniques such as trying to detect for nystagmus (involuntary eye movement while tracking an object) as justification for impaired driving. However, this really cannot be admissible evidence even if the officer is trained unless it is recorded. Improvements in recording techniques should make this possible.

The best thing to do is record the interaction on a traffic stop and let the jury decide (with consultation from experts) as to whether the driver was impaired.

We simply cannot trust, as sole or primary evidence, the witness and testimony of police officers.


34 posted on 07/12/2018 5:46:26 AM PDT by grumpygresh (Abolish administrative law. It's regressive, medieval and unconstitutional!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: mabarker1

Kennedy = get out of jail free.


35 posted on 07/12/2018 6:07:18 AM PDT by wally_bert (Just call me Angelo or babe.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 19 | View Replies]

To: yesthatjallen

I too would question this statistic. Pot remains detectable in your system for about 30 days, far beyond any intoxication from same. That’s going to skew everything into meaninglessness.


36 posted on 07/12/2018 7:01:30 AM PDT by zeugma (Power without accountability is fertilizer for tyranny.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: zeugma

Which is why I wouldn’t have a problem with zero tolerance. Want to drive? Don’t use it. Ditto for booze.


37 posted on 07/12/2018 7:04:48 AM PDT by mewzilla (Has the FBI been spying on members of Congress?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 36 | View Replies]

To: Notthereyet

They knew, chose to ignore it. Just like they are Ignoring the Suicides of Chronic Pain Patients.


38 posted on 07/12/2018 7:16:25 AM PDT by GailA (Ret. SCPO Wife: suck it up buttercups it's President Donald Trump!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: Notthereyet
data from the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA)

What the GHSA says (https://www.ghsa.org/sites/default/files/2017-07/GHSA_DruggedDriving2017_FINAL_revised.pdf:

Risk level Relative risk Drug category
Slightly increased risk 1-3 marijuana
Medium increased risk 2-10 benzodiazepines, cocaine, opioid
Highly increased risk 5-30 amphetamines, multiple drugs
Extremely increased risk 20-200 alcohol together with drugs

39 posted on 07/12/2018 8:57:31 AM PDT by NobleFree ("law is often but the tyrant's will, and always so when it violates the right of an individual")
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: NobleFree
To complete the story, blood alcohol content of higher than 0.05 puts one in the medium increased risk cateogory, and higher than 0.08 in highly increased risk.
40 posted on 07/12/2018 9:09:10 AM PDT by NobleFree ("law is often but the tyrant's will, and always so when it violates the right of an individual")
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 39 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-45 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson