cannabisnews.com: B.C. Police Target Drivers Impaired by Drugs





B.C. Police Target Drivers Impaired by Drugs
Posted by CN Staff on June 03, 2003 at 21:44:39 PT
CTV.ca News Staff
Source: CTV
B.C. police issued more than 1,000 licence suspensions last year, suspecting drivers were impaired by drugs but were unable to prove it. Now, they're training to spot drivers who have smoked pot. A video is teaching officers how to look for such signs as dilated pupils and loss of balance in something they call drug recognition.
"If there was something that would work roadside, certainly I would advocate it. Right now, we're going with the best we have," RCMP Const. Evan Graham says.As it stands, there are roadside drug tests that check saliva samples, but experts say they simply aren't accurate enough to stand up in court.The only other test, which uses blood and urine samples, is cumbersome. It's also voluntary and Graham says drivers usually refuse to give a sample. He also says that all too frequently pot smokers get behind the wheel.In a poll commissioned by Ontario's Centre for Addictions shows last year, three per cent of drivers admitted to smoking up before they got behind the wheel. That translates into 200,000 drivers.For groups like Mothers Against Drunk Driving, it's troubling. MADD spokesperson Andrew Murie says pot smokers should face the same penalties as drunk drivers.Marijuana advocate and pot smoker Mark Emery has a different take on the situation. He believes that people drive more cautiously when they are high. "I don't see marijuana as an impairment, I see it as an enhancement," he says.The federal government, meanwhile, has promised it will put more power in the hands of police. But for now, without a reliable test, and a law to say how high is too high, police are left to rely on their instincts instead of science to prove guilt.With a report for CTV's Sarah GalashanSource: CTV (Canada)Published: June 02, 2003Copyright: 2003 Bell Globemedia Interactive Inc. Website: http://www.ctv.ca/Contact: newsonline ctv.ca Related Articles & Web Sites:Pot-TVhttp://www.pot-tv.netCannabis News Canadian Linkshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/can.htmNew Laws Needed for Drivers Smoking Pothttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15034.shtmlCauchon Vows Action on Drug-Impaired Drivinghttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread16432.shtml
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Comment #4 posted by afterburner on July 17, 2003 at 06:27:45 PT:
Will Saliva Show Impairment or Residual Residue?
High Society - "Impairment test" or "Swab"? http://www.pot-tv.net/archive/shows/pottvshowse-2071.html
High Society with David Malmo-Levine http://www.pot-tv.net/ram/pottvshowse2071.ram 
Running Time: 8 min 
Date Entered: 16 Jul 2003 
Viewer Rating: 8.25 (6 votes) 
 
Number of Views: 233 
 
Folks in Utah are now required to stick their toungues out and allow cops to steal their spit! DML announces the arrival of the "RapiScan" saliva swabber, then attacks the "inherent impairment" myth. Watch for the clip of alcoholics trying to walk a straight line from "COPS - too HOT for TV!" (1996) Back story:Utah Police to Test Saliva for DUI
JoinTogether.org - 25 Jun 2003
... Tribune reported June 17. Called RapiScan, the new device manufactured
by Cozart detects drug use through a saliva swab. The device is ... http://www.jointogether.org/sa/news/summaries/reader/0,1854,564430,00.html
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Comment #3 posted by FoM on June 03, 2003 at 22:53:57 PT
My Solution To The Drugged Driving Issue
This is a common sense way of determining how much cannabis impairs a driver. Just advertise for volunteers to do driving tests while using Cannabis. Compare them to others that will drink and then drive and test impairment. Promise immunity for those who volunteer. Have it recorded and have people with no agenda but credible in the eyes of those in charge do a detailed report. It's that simple to me!
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Comment #2 posted by afterburner on June 03, 2003 at 22:11:42 PT:
According to the Canadian Senate Report:
Marijuana use has little impact on driving. Marc Emery even goes so far as to say that cannabis is a performance enhancer. This fuss about cannabis driving is another scare tactic by people who know nothing about cannabis or deliberately want to mislead people. It is another card in the house of cards called cannabis prohibition lies.ego transcendence follows ego destruction when cannabis is re-legalized and the science can truly study it objectively.
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Comment #1 posted by FoM on June 03, 2003 at 21:46:52 PT
Related CTV Video
Related Video 
 CTV News: B.C. police are learning how to spot drivers impaired by pot. -- 1:51 http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/1054688329499_36/?hub=Canada
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