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In 2012, Colorado voters overwhelmingly approved a change to the state constitution that allowed the sale and personal use of marijuana for recreational use. Sales began in 2014. Since then, the state has issued more than 2,900 commercial marijuana licenses, 481 of which went to retail dispensaries. As a result, as one news outlet pointed out, Colorado has more marijuana dispensaries than Starbucks, McDonald’s and 7-Eleven combined.
But even though it is legal to use, it is still illegal to drive under the influence of marijuana. Tragically, too many drivers seem to be ignoring that and are putting lives in danger by smoking and driving. If you have been injured in a car accident due to a drunk driver, a personal injury attorney can help you.
Fatal accidents on the rise
According to The Denver Post analysis, the number of drivers involved in fatal car accidents who later tested positive for marijuana has increased each year since legalization. Higher levels of the drug are also showing up in drivers who tested positive. Last year, in an extreme example, a driver tested 22 times the legal limit for marijuana.
From 2013 to 2016, Colorado saw a 40 percent increase in the number of traffic fatalities overall, reaching 880 last year, according to figures from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The data also reveals that alcohol-related deaths have been on the rise, rising 17 percent. However, the number of drivers who tested positive for marijuana rose nearly 150 percent and now accounts for 10 percent of all fatal car accidents.
While officials are quick to point out that this dramatic increase in marijuana-related traffic deaths cannot be conclusively linked to legalization, the figures are concerning.
“Unlike alcohol, THC [the active ingredient in marijuana] it can remain detectable in the bloodstream for days or weeks, when any deterioration disappears within hours, “Taylor West, former deputy director of the National Cannabis Industry Association, told The Denver Post.” So all those numbers really tell us is that since legal adult sales started, more people are using cannabis and then at some point … driving a car. “
The test is a problem
That is the problem facing state and local governments. Cannabis use is skyrocketing, but law enforcement officials are still scrambling to find a way to definitively test drivers. There is no marijuana breathalyzer or blood test that the police can use to screen drivers. There is tests that verify delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, but there is no universally accepted standard that indicates who is actually affected, despite the frantic efforts of scientists to establish one.
Colorado uses a THC blood test that law enforcement can use to reveal what’s known as “suspected” impairment. The allowed inference is set at five nanograms of THC per milliliter. Alcohol breaks down quickly in the body, making it easier to detect. THC, on the other hand, can stay in the body much longer. In fact, regular users who later abstain from using marijuana can still test positive a month or more later.
At least two private companies are researching breath detection devices, but scientists estimate that they are months or years away from reaching the market. As a result, Colorado has begun training its officers on what to look for during traffic stops when deciding whether a driver is drunk.