Lately there has been a significant push for Marijuana legalization across the nation. One of the concerns that arise with this radical change in the law that is seldom discussed is what kind of impact would Marijuana legalization impact DUI laws.
If Marijuana legalization is to become a reality I believe it is a matter of two things that need to be addressed with regard in Marijuana DUI cases. The first question is whether there should be any legal limits on Marijuana. The second issue is whether both inactive and active amounts of marijuana be considered criminalized.
The first issue that needs to be resolved will be what the legally-enforceable limit would be. The United States there are several states that have enacted specific laws for Marijuana DUI cases meaning they have set the legal limit. For instance, the states of Nevada and Ohio there are two nanogram limits. In other words that is the equivalent of a.08 alcohol level for alcohol related DUI charges. Based on the study I have done it is fascinating that Nevada's strict per se laws led to an increase of Marijuana DUI arrests by 76 percent, while Ohio's implementation of these laws led to a decreased of 4.8 percent.
The second issue that needs to be determined is whether both the active THC and the inactive metabolite THC will be punished. The states with per se DUI laws also have an increased amount of inactive THC metabolite in light of the fact that the longer is stays in the system the less impact it will have on affecting the individual. In the case of Ohio and Nevada, Nevada and Ohio have a 10-nanogram limit on the inactive metabolite.
In my opinion if these issues remain unsolved the law will continue to be very murky when it comes to DUIs. In fact whenever I represent someone who is charged with an Marijuana DUI, it really seems that different Prosecutors seem to have differing opinions on when Marijuana impairs the individual. A toxicologist is typically employed by the Prosecution to present evidence regarding the effects of Marijuana on the human bodyand at https://baghoomianlaw.com/ what point is it considered to be impairing, based on different studies. Because of the ambiguities and the many different theories that are available in the field of science about this issue, typically the Defense also employs an expert to challenge what the Prosecutors expert states.
If the legalization of Marijuana does happen as well as the issues that I discussed are considered than it would make this legal area much more concrete and would assist people to understand the impairment than Marijuana can cause on the ability of in a vehicle.