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| Driving High Bill Dies in Senate |
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Posted by CN Staff on May 09, 2011 at 19:42:07 PT By John Ingold, The Denver Post Source: Denver Post 
Denver -- A proposal at the state Capitol to set a limit for how stoned is too stoned to drive died this evening in the Senate.In a crucial vote, lawmakers rejected a hard cap on the amount of THC — the psychoactive chemical in marijuana — drivers could have in their systems above which they would be presumed too high to drive. Instead, a divided Senate sided with medical-marijuana advocates, who urged more study of the proposal. "We are being asked to make policy by anecdote," Sen. Shawn Mitchell, R-Broomfield, said in arguing for extra research. "... Policy should be well-considered." With the teeth of the proposal removed, the Senate later voted to kill the bill, a decision that withstood a subsequent procedural challenge 20-15. Sen. Steve King, a Grand Junction Republican who was one of House Bill 1261's sponsors, said failing to set a THC limit would have real consequences. He cited instances of fatal accidents in which the at-fault drivers tested positive for THC. "Lives are at risk here," he said. But Mitchell noted that some of those drivers had THC levels below the proposed limit — 5 nanograms per milliliter of blood. Echoing the concerns of a number of lawmakers, Aurora Democratic Sen. Morgan Carroll said she believes the research is inconclusive about how much THC definitively causes impairment, meaning a 5-nanogram limit might snare sober drivers while allowing stoned ones to go free. Snipped Complete Article: http://www.denverpost.com/breakingnews/ci_18028238 Source: Denver Post (CO) CannabisNews -- Cannabis Archives Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help
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| Comment #1 posted by runruff on May 10, 2011 at 05:02:43 PT |
| Our little town is so small we don't even have a town drunk, so we all take turns. [ Post Comment ] |
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