[ OUR OPINION ]
DRUNKEN motorists are clearly identified by their blood-alcohol content, but authorities have no such formula to prove that a driver was under the influence of illicit drugs. Only eight states have "zero tolerance" for any drug use by motorists, while the other states, including Hawaii, require prosecutors to link erratic driving with drugs. Hawaii legislators should consider a flat prohibition of driving after using any illicit drug if no practical threshold level of drug content can be established. ‘Drugged driving’
a hazard on isle roads
THE ISSUE A national review of state laws against driving under the influence of drugs has suggested "zero tolerance."
Determining such a chemical threshold is impossible because of the types of drugs ingested and the method in which they were ingested. Finding a link between erratic driving and illicit drug usage may be achievable in only the most glaring and tragic cases.
A 38-year-old Oahu mechanic is being tried in Circuit Court on a manslaughter charge stemming from the death two years ago of an 11-year-old passenger in his car. Tests showed that the driver had taken not only Valium, which had been prescribed, but crystal methamphetamine. The driver claims he failed to appreciate the potential consequences of his drug usage.
Driving "while under the influence of any illicit drug which impairs such person's ability to operate the vehicle in a careful and prudent manner" is illegal in Hawaii. Unlike drunken-driving cases, where blood-alcohol content of at least .08 proves illegal intoxication, prosecutors must prove in drugged-driving cases that the impairment was related to the drug ingested by the driver.
"There is an assumption that if we can identify the drunk drivers, we are also getting all the drugged drivers. That is not true," says Michael Walsh, former director of the president's Drug Advisory Council under the Reagan and first Bush administrations and lead author of a review of state laws on driving under the influence of drugs.
"There are literally millions of Americans who are driving under the influence of drugs, often with little or any alcohol." Improved laws could help identify "drugged drivers" and get them treatment before they become serious threats to public safety, he says. The Walsh report praises states that do not tolerate the presence of any prohibited drug in a person's body while driving.
The report, issued by Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, also warns of "a serious problem" in states, such as Hawaii, that have legalized the use of marijuana for medical purposes. In Utah, assertions that illicit drugs were involuntarily ingested or were prescribed by a physician are specifically allowed as an affirmative defense in drugged-driving cases. Defense attorneys in Hawaii are sure to argue in future drugged-driving cases that medical marijuana may not be considered an illicit drug if prescribed by a doctor.
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