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Title: Roadside drug testing pilot program starts Wednesday
Source:
Times Herald
URL Source: http://www.thetimesherald.com/story ... am-starts-wednesday/825577001/
Published: Nov 2, 2017
Author: Liz Shepard
Post Date: 2017-11-06 14:24:03 by Gatlin
Keywords: None
Views: 1293
Comments: 29
Drivers in St. Clair County will be among the first in the state who could be required to submit to roadside drug testing. The pilot program for the roadside drug testing begins Wednesday in five counties: Berrien, Delta, Kent, St. Clair and Washtenaw. The counties were chosen based on criteria including the number of impaired crashes reported and the number of Drug Recognition Experts in the county. DREs are law enforcement officials trained to recognize drugged drivers. "We're really excited to be chosen as one of the five counties," said St. Clair County Prosecutor Mike Wendling. More: Memorial honors state trooper who died in crash The testing involves taking a swab of the driver's mouth, as well as a 12-step evaluation. Drivers who refuse to submit to a preliminary oral fluid analysis face being ticketed for a civil infraction. DREs will be provided handheld devices that the swab will be inserted into. The devices recognize drugs including amphetamines, benzodiazepine, cannabis, cocaine, methamphetamine and opioids and gives a reading within a few minutes, said Michigan State Police Special First Lt. Jim Flegel. While the pilot is being managed by the Michigan State Police, the testing will also be utilized by county and municipal agencies. Wendling said local officials started working on this pilot program following a double fatal crash involving a drugged driver. Lisa Bergman had consumed a variety of prescription medications, methamphetamine and alcohol when the pickup she was driving crossed the center line of Lapeer Road and collided head-first with a pickup carrying Russell Ward and Koby Raymo on July 20, 2013. They both were killed. More: Drugged driving: Protect others from your choices Prosecution showed during her trial Bergman had been involved in seven other driving incidents in which it was believed she was under the influence of prescription medicines and other substances. Wendling said it is unknown if a saliva test during one of the prior stops could have kept her off the road. "We all know what a danger drunk driving is; drugged driving is equally as dangerous and it's just harder to detect," he said. "This will give officers a better way to detect while still protecting people's rights." Wendling said the roadside test result will not be admissible in court, much like a preliminary breath test. He said search warrants could be sought for blood draws for admissible evidence. The test will give officers the ability to determine why a driver is driving recklessly, and if it shows negative, could indicate someone is in need of medical help. Wendling said he doesn't believe there are any questions about the validity or reliability of the test, which has been used by probation and parole departments for a number of years. "It may not be admissible to a jury or a judge, but it's certainly an effective tool for an officer to know if they should be driving or not," he said. St. Clair County Sheriff Tim Donnellon said he has a few deputies trained as DREs. Drugged driving has had a "tremendous uptick in the opioid epidemic as well as the continual rise of the THC," he said. In 2016, there were 2,667 drug-involved crashes in Michigan, according to MSP. That was a 20 percent increase from 2015. St. Clair County reported 53 drug-involved crashes in 2016, including one fatality, according to the MSP statistics. Flegel said DREs in the five counties will go through training Monday and Tuesday on using the devices. If the program is deemed successful, Flegel said the department will send a report to the Legislature and look to branching into more counties. "Unfortunately with the opioid epidemic and medical marijuana, we've seen a huge influx in driver fatalities when operating under the influence of drugs," he said. Flegel said he expects the pilot program to be closely watched. "It's going to be one of the first in the country to do this," he said. "There are going to be many other states and agencies looking to us and toward our results as to how it is conducted." Michigan law enforcement agencies will be using Abbott’s Alere DDS Mobile Forensic Test System. “Abbott is pleased to provide the Michigan State Police with a testing instrument that can be used at the roadside. Our handheld instrument empowers officers to make informed decisions that will positively impact public safety,” Scott Taillie, vice president of toxicology at Abbott, said in a statement. Poster Comment: Book ‘em, Dano.
Get those pot smoking heatherns off the highways and MRSR (Make Roads Safe Again).
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#6. To: Gatlin (#0)
This is bullshit fishing expeditions. Whoever thought of this should be put on trial for treason. They are waging a war against the constitution. Your over zealousness sometimes clouds your judgement and makes you support things that are contrary to the constitution. Have you ever read the fourth amendment? Tell me exactly how this doesn't violate the fourth amendment.
I personally have never had any problem whatsoever passing through a DUI checkpoint. In fact, the locations of the DUI checkpoints around here are well publicized in advance and I could easily avoid one by taking an alternate route anytime I wished to. When I approach a DUI checkpoint, I always have the driver’s window down and the left rear limo tint window full down so the officer can also see in the back seat area. I keep both hands fully visible on top of the steering wheel and greet the officer with a “Good Evening, Sir/Ma’am.” [No, not brownnosing….I always refer to everyone as “Sir” or “Ma’am. That was the proper upbringing that has been carried forward from my Southern heritage]. The officer generally looks at me and then waves me on through….at which time I wish the officer to “have a good evening.” I cannot of course help but notice the dumb bastards lined up and trying to walk in a straight line. I chuckle thinking there are at least a few Sons-of-Bitches who will not kill me this evening….and mutter a silent “Thank You” to the officers who will be taking them into custody. But unfortunately, not all DUI drivers get caught in check points. For it is a couple times or more each week I read that people were killed in the area by a person driving under the influence. Here is but one tragic event that keeps coming back to mind for personal reasons: Keaton Allison, 21, had a BAC level of 0.25 percent, according to blood-testing results from the Maricopa County Office of the Medical Examiner. A blood-alcohol level between 0.16 and 0.3 percent qualifies as "severe impairment," with effects including "dangerously impaired" driving skills and decision-making ability, blackouts and loss of consciousness, according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. In Arizona, a DUI is considered "super extreme" when the driver’s BAC level is 0.2 percent or above. Allison drove nearly six miles the wrong way before running head-on into the vehicle in which Karli and Kelsey Richardson were riding at 2:10 a.m. on April 14. You stated about me: But you have absolutely NO basis WHATSOEVER to say that I in any way support things that are contrary to the Constitution. Just because I don’t agree with your opinion and your personal interpretation of the Constitution does not mean I am wrong….it only means that you disagree with me. So be it …
Just because I don’t agree with your opinion and your personal interpretation of the Constitution does not mean I am wrong….it only means that you disagree with me. So be it … I'm not saying you are a bad person. People in the day of slavery who opposed it and say harbored slaves. They acted against the constitution but they followed their hearts with what they thought was a higher calling. I'm just observing a fact I see. I'm not saying you are wrong to think it is more important to pull people over and violate their plain 4th amendment rights. Possibly saving someones life. That could be the right thing to do. The moral thing to do. You need to for the purposes of this conversation tell us how this doesn't violate the fourth amendment since you said we can't say that you don't support the constitution. Just take a stab at it.
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Top • Page Up • Full Thread • Page Down • Bottom/LatestDrivers in St. Clair County will be among the first in the state who could be required to submit to roadside drug testing.
#14. To: A K A Stone (#6)
The wrong-way driver who caused a crash that killed two sisters and himself had a blood-alcohol level three times the legal limit at the time of the collision on Interstate 17 in Phoenix, a report shows.
Wouldn’t it have been nice had Allison come upon a DUI check point that evening before he entered the Interstate and killed Kelsey and Karli Richardson? Your over zealousness sometimes clouds your judgement and makes you support things that are contrary to the constitution.
If you want to call my strong desire to prevent anyone from being killed by an inconsiderate bastard driving under the influence as being over zealous….then I will cop a plea to that.
#15. To: Gatlin (#14)
If you want to call my strong desire to prevent anyone from being killed by an inconsiderate bastard driving under the influence as being over zealous….then I will cop a plea to that. But you have absolutely NO basis WHATSOEVER to say that I in any way support things that are contrary to the Constitution.
Replies to Comment # 15.
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