cannabisnews.com: Judge: Blood Test Cannot Be Used in Crash Case Judge: Blood Test Cannot Be Used in Crash Case Posted by FoM on May 12, 2001 at 09:03:50 PT By The Associated Press Source: Las Vegas Review-Journal A judge's ruling in a fatal automobile accident may provide an opportunity to test a law that allows motorists to be charged with a felony if they have even trace amounts of drugs in their system. The validity of that statute, which resulted in a conviction in a highly publicized Las Vegas case, already is under attack in the Nevada Supreme Court. Washoe District Judge Brent Adams said Thursday that prosecutors cannot use a blood test to prove a man had marijuana in his system shortly before a car crash that killed a 17-year-old woman and her infant in July. Prosecutors said they probably will appeal the ruling, which damages their case, and may file new charges of involuntary manslaughter. Robert McKellips' pickup crashed into a car, killing Mayra Ledezma-Martinez and her 5-month-old daughter, Jennifer. McKellips, 20, told officers he had smoked one marijuana cigarette the day before the accident. McKellips' lawyer, Scott Freeman, said the blood test showed McKellips had only a small amount of marijuana in his system and that amount could not have contributed to the accident. Defense lawyers have claimed the law is so broad and vague that a person cannot know whether or not he is violating the law because trace amounts of drugs can stay in the body for weeks. A Las Vegas jury convicted Jessica Williams, now 22, on Feb. 16 of six counts of driving with Ecstasy and marijuana in her body. She crashed her minivan into a roadside youth offenders work crew March 19, 2000, killing six of them. Her attorney, John Watkins, is challenging the state law under which his client was convicted.Source: Las Vegas Review-Journal (NV)Published: Saturday, May 12, 2001Copyright: 2001 Las Vegas Review-JournalContact: letters lvrj.comWebsite: http://www.lvrj.com/Related Articles:Blaming Jessica: Drug Use, DUI or Reckless Driving http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread8796.shtmlLaw on Solid Ground, Court Rulings Suggesthttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread8795.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #3 posted by John Markes on May 13, 2001 at 04:19:54 PT They Missed Something Important... They are missing out on their greatest defense. The law specifies a certain level of what is tested for. They don't test for what gets a person high, delta-9-thc, but a metabolite that does not get a person high at all. Merely by it's presense a day after, one can show that there isnothing tested for that could relate to the accident. The law can't be applicable until drug testing tests for delta-9-thc. IT has been found that a person can pass a drug test after smoking a joint because there were not yet any metabolites to test for... [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by Sayyo on May 12, 2001 at 12:39:57 PT Do the XTZ Dew is ok, but too sugary and wimpy amounts of caffeine and no other stimulating substances. Toss one of these puppies back: http://xtz.com/ (X-drinx) and you can feel your eyes opening up. (Either that or the great placebo effect.) [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by mountaindewman on May 12, 2001 at 09:27:58 PT Do the Dew Geee maybe it was the mountain dew (we all know mountain dew freaks are stoners Pepsi-Cola should be NORML's largest contributor hint hint) the caffiene maybe interupted his concentration. [ Post Comment ] Post Comment Name: Optional Password: E-Mail: Subject: Comment: [Please refrain from using profanity in your message] Link URL: Link Title: