Pubdate: Sun, 02 May 2004 Source: Edmonton Sun (CN AB) Copyright: 2004, Canoe Limited Partnership. Contact: http://www.fyiedmonton.com/htdocs/edmsun.shtml Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/135 Author: Mindelle Jacobs Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/testing.htm (Drug Testing) DRUGGED DRIVERS A THREAT TO SAFETY No one who values public safety over the rights of drivers opposes the authority given to police to conduct CheckStops and demand breath samples. It's simply understood that drunk drivers are potential killers on wheels and when it comes to the protection of the public, motorists should not have complete freedom from police intrusion. The courts have clearly stated that roadside checks and demands for breath samples are reasonable limits on people's liberties in order to keep our roads safer. But drunk drivers are not the only dangers on our streets. Motorists stoned out of their minds on drugs - both legal and illegal - are also public hazards. Try catching them, though. While it's illegal to drive impaired by alcohol or a drug, the cops have no authority to demand field sobriety tests or bodily fluid samples from suspected drug-impaired motorists. Instead, the police have to rely on general symptoms of impairment, driving behaviour and witness testimony. The only way of accumulating more evidence is if a suspected drug-impaired driver volunteers to do a sobriety test or provide a urine sample, for instance. Drivers sometimes agree to the tests, mind you. An Edmonton woman volunteered to be checked out after she drove onto the sidewalk and injured a pedestrian, recalls Edmonton police Sgt. Conrad Moschansky. It turned out she was taking seven different prescription drugs and didn't realize she was impaired, says Moschansky, a specially trained drug recognition expert (DRE). The woman pleaded guilty to impaired driving, was fined $1,500 and lost her licence for a year. Most drug-impaired drivers, of course, don't volunteer for the 12-step DRE evaluation, which includes a breath test, interview, eye exam, check of vital signs and the provision of bodily fluid samples. So Moschansky and the other 70-odd DRE-trained cops across Canada have to do their best in court with the subjective evidence they've got. "It amazes me how many people are out there under the influence (of drugs)," says Moschansky. "I'm seeing it more and more now that I know what to look for." Many drivers just don't realize they're stoned, he adds. He's keeping his fingers crossed that legislation introduced by Justice Minister Irwin Cotler last week will help get more drug-impaired drivers off the roads. The draft law gives cops the authority to demand roadside field sobriety tests and conduct DRE evaluations. The DRE program was developed by the Los Angeles police force and is used in most U.S. states. Under Ottawa's proposed law, refusal to comply with a police officer's demand would be an offence, as is already the case if a suspected drunk driver refuses to give a breath sample. Unlike with alcohol, there is no roadside device like a breathalyser to detect a driver's specific drug concentrations. And there is no scientific consensus on drug levels that cause impairment and make driving dangerous. But that is no reason to fear that Ottawa's new legislation will be shot down by the courts. You can be convicted of impaired driving after consuming only one beer if there's evidence that alcohol hampered your ability to drive. In such cases, judges make their rulings based on the observations of police officers. Until we have the technology to determine legal limits for drugs with roadside tests, as we have for alcohol, we must rely on the observations and evaluations of specially trained police officers. But the cops can't properly do their jobs unless they can demand driver compliance. As Cotler remarked last week: "Ultimately, these amendments are about saving lives." The draft legislation will "inevitably" be challenged in the courts, says Edmonton lawyer Brian McGlashan, who defends accused impaired drivers. But he believes it's only a matter of time before drug-impaired driving charges are as routine as drunk driving cases as drug-detection technology improves. "Drug tests will become part of the landscape," he predicts. And perhaps our roads will be a little safer. - --- MAP posted-by: Josh