DUI LAW
Drugs &
Prescription DUI
This is a blog post about Drugs and Prescription DUI according to your needs.
The Fallacy of the Silent Trap: Why Legal Drugs Can Still Show up on the wrong side of the road.
When majority of the population envisions a DUI, the image that comes to mind is a drunkard leaving a bar and blowing into a breathalyzer after spending the night at the bar. However in the modern world, such a picture is very riskily unfinished. In Atlanta, the number of arrests associated to DUI is increasing at a blistering pace and all is about what is in your medicine cabinets.
Driving under the influence of drugs (DUI-D) is a surreal and misconstrued offense. Whether it is illegal narcotics, marijuana or the clean prescription drugs, the state takes impaired driving as seriously. The I have a prescription defense is not the umbrella you believe it to be in case you are facing a charge related to drugs.
The Myth of Prescription Defense.
The biggest misinformation about DUI-D is that an individual can drive legally as long as the physician prescribed the drug. This is false.
The law of Georgia is concerned with impairment and not legality. In case any substance- any substance at all- makes you a driver whom is not as safe as he used to be, the rule of the road is that you are not to drive. This applies to:
Painkillers (Opioids): Percocet, OxyContin, Vicodin.
Anti-Anxiety Drugs (Benzodiazepines): Xanax, Valium, Klonopin.
Sleep Aids: Ambien, Lunesta.
Antidepressants & Stimulants: Ritalin, Adderall.
The officers are trained to identify signs of impairment irrespective of the origin. Being drowsy, having slurred speech, or behaving erratically on the road will not prevent the arrest despite you having a valid bottle of prescription medications in the passenger seat. Indeed, it is sometimes the occasion on which they can demand a blood test.
There is no so-called Magic Number (The Science Problem)
In the case of alcohol, the law is specific, it is 0.08 percent. The science of drugs is still a lot murkier.
With most prescription drugs and marijuana, no universal limit is universally agreed upon on what per se constitutes impairedness. There is no uniformity in tolerance. A long-term sufferer of chronic pain may operate at a normal level on a dosage that would put a new user to sleep.
Since pills do not have a breathalyzer, the state is dependent to a large extent on blood tests. Blood tests however only reveal presence not necessarily impairment. A blood test could indicate the traces of marijuana or Xanax which you consumed some days ago, when you were no longer under the influence of psychoactive substances.
That is when an experienced Atlanta DUI Attorney will be needed. They are knowledgeable on the pharmacology. They can claim that merely the fact you had a drug in your system does not indicate that you were under the influence when driving. In the absence of an Atlanta DUI Lawyer to dispute the interpretation of state concerning the blood work, the jury would easily think that any form of trace of drugs would be a conviction.
The DRE The Drug Recognition Expert.
Police departments are now using so-called Drug Recognition Experts (DREs) since the standard field sobriety testing (such as walking the line) was initially designed to detect alcohol. They are specially trained officers who are to detect drug impairment on physical manifestations such as:
The size of the pupil (dilated or constrained).
Pulse rate and blood pressure.
Muscle tone (rigid or flaccid).
Injection sites.The assessment of a DRE is a subjective test. They are adhering to a 12-step protocol yet they are not doctors or toxicologists, they are police officers. Their diagnosis can be readily criticized. An experienced DUI Attorney Atlanta is familiar enough to cross-examine a DRE to reveal where their observations do not coincide with medical science or in areas where they have not adhered to their own strict guidelines.
The “Marijuana” Confusion
There is a shift in the marijuana legislation throughout the country, yet laws on DUI are coming slowly. Although you may be a medical marijuana user (or you may be in a state where it is recreational), being under the influence and driving is still a DUI.
The problem with marijuana is that the metabolites of THC can remain in your body weeks. A blood test could indicate that you are positive of the marijuana even when you have not smoked in days. This poses a frightening situation when the ordinary users are behind the wheel but they have a fender bender and are sober. The distinction between an active (impairment) and an inactive (history of use) THC can only be maneuvered by a specialized DUI Attorney Atlanta.
Why You Should have specialized Representation.
The concept of fighting a drug DUI is completely different compared to fighting an alcohol DUI. It is a struggle of science, biology and chemistry.
What you require is a defense team capable of subpoenaing the lab data and reviewing the gas chromatography reports as well as contesting the chain of custody of your blood sample. The case may be easily won or decreased, in the event that the state fails to demonstrate beyond reasonable doubt the particular quantity of the drug in your system rendered you an inexperienced motorist.
There is no way to assume that the jury will know that you were arrested because of driving on medication. The drug driving stigma is very strong. You require someone to make you human and understand the science. Call a respected DUI Attorney in Atlanta or locate a DUI Attorney Atlanta and discuss your medical background and prepare your defense.