Turning Insight Into Action
Ohio is one of six states that have legal tests in place to determine if a driver is impaired by marijuana – but what do these tests really tell us? Not much, according to a recent study commissioned by the American Auto Association (AAA), the nation’s largest automobile club. According to their study it is not possible to set a simple blood-test threshold for THC (the chemical responsible for marijuana’s psychological effects). They insist that the tests have no scientific basis at all.
Determining whether someone is impaired by marijuana is far more complex than the simple tests that have been developed for alcohol. According to AAA’s CEO Marshall Doney, “In the case of marijuana, this approach is flawed and not supported by scientific data.”
Marijuana is not metabolized by the body in the same way as alcohol – there is no science that shows that drivers become impaired when their blood reaches a specific level of THC. It is possible for some drivers to remain unimpaired with relatively high levels of THC in their system. Others drivers with lower levels of THC in their system may be entirely impaired behind the wheel – and this inconsistency seriously discredits any universal THC standards for impairment.
A lot depends on the individual when it comes to marijuana. THC persists in the blood of frequent marijuana users long after use, while it dissipates more rapidly among occasional users. The current tests in place can only tell us if a driver has merely used the drug at some point – the presence of THC’s metabolites can linger in the body weeks after use. This could lead to the inappropriate conviction of drivers who are otherwise operating their vehicle safely. Further, the body processes active THC very quickly, so a driver may very well fall below the legal threshold before a blood test is administered.
Exactly how dangerous is driving under the influence of marijuana? It is about as dangerous as driving with a “noisy child in the back of the car,” according to Mark A. R. Kleiman, an NYU professor and specialist in issues involving drugs and criminal policy. By comparison, driving while using a hands-free cellphone quadruples the risk of an accident. Kleiman also noted that the average alcohol content in drunk driving cases renders you 15 times more likely to crash your car.
According to AAA – motorists are being convicted of driving under the influence of marijuana based on what seem to be arbitrary state standards that have no connection to whether the driver was actually impaired.
Sources:
http://norml.org/library/item/marijuana-and-driving-a-review-of-the-scientific-evidence
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/scientific-basis-laws-marijuana-driving-questioned-39001339