 | Drug Testing: NORML attacks driver drug tests |
 NORML were mentioned in the press pointing out the problems with the planned new driver impairment tests.
A group of 32 officers will be "specially trained" this month to use subjective measures to detect drivers on drugs, such as pupil dilation and physical coordination, in preparation for a three to six-month trial expected to begin in June. The NZ regions to be included in the trial have yet to be decided, but Northland, Waikato and Canterbury are picked to be the likely testing spots.
NORML president Chris Fowlie told NZPA "Our big concern is that there will be potentially biased officers taking a very subjective assessment of a driver."
The police claim the assessments will be "95 per cent" accurate - even if that is true, what about the other 5 percent that will be falsely accused?
 23/01/04 Driver drug testing to be trialled this year
 16/4/04 Otago Daily Times: Drug-Testing Plan Flawed, NORML Says
15/4/04 New Zealand Herald: Cannabis group attacks driver tests
Cannabis group attacks driver tests
NZPA, New Zealand Herald, 15 April 2004
A pro-cannabis lobby group says a proposed trial to test drivers for drug use could be too subjective to be accurate.
Police booze bus staff nationwide will be trained this month to identify drivers on drugs, in preparation for a three to six-month trial, expected before June. Northland is one of the likely testing spots.
Staff will learn to spot a driver on drugs by physical indicators and tests, such as requiring the driver to stand on one leg. Police would then require the motorist to take an evidential blood test.
While the regions for the trial have yet to be decided, national police road and safety manager Superintendent Steve Fitzgerald has said that Northland is a likely option.
National Organisation for Reform of Marijuana Laws (Norml) spokesman Chris Fowlie said Norml did not support people driving while impaired in any way, but was concerned with how police were planning to determine what constituted "impaired".
"All the Government is preparing is a subjective test where an officer will decide on the spot whether someone is affected by drugs based on dilated pupils, slurred speech and their ability to walk a straight line. Our big concern is that there will be potentially biased officers taking a very subjective assessment of a driver."
He said that while blood-alcohol readings could be very accurate follow-ups to breath-testing in the case of alcohol impairment, the high-inducing agent in cannabis, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), broke down into non-psychoactive metabolites (which do not cause impairment) very quickly.
These could be stored in the body for up to a month.
"It [the test] is useless for measuring impairment. Clearly people would not be impaired a month after smoking a joint," Mr Fowlie said.
In contrast, harder drugs such as methamphetamine were harder to detect both subjectively and in blood tests.
"The methodology's ill-conceived and will see a lot of people of no danger to road users potentially being arrested."
Overseas studies showed that cannabis could affect reaction times and the ability to maintain a steady, straight line. However, people concentrated more on their driving when stoned and were much less likely to take risks when driving, Mr Fowlie said.
Mr Fitzgerald has said the "field impairment tests" were designed by neurologists, and properly trained staff would be 95 per cent accurate.
Under the Land Transport Act it is an offence to drive under the influence of drugs to the extent of being "incapable of having proper control of the vehicle".
There are no defined thresholds for the level of drugs which would render a driver "incapable" and a charging threshold has yet to be established.
"The trial is simply the first step for us to say technology is moving on and the legislation is likely to change, so it's about time we make a move to get some expertise on the subject."
Northland road policing manager Inspector Rex Knight said driver drug-testing might take two years to be instituted fully but the trial was a positive step.
Police estimate that up to 16 per cent of drivers killed on New Zealand roads have been under the influence of drugs.
- NZPA
MORE INFO:
24/1/04 Can Taking Cannabis Make You An Even Better Driver?
Moderate amount of cannabis may improve driving performance
Drug Policy Alliance's Drugs and Driving research bibliography
03/05/2000 UK Department for Transport: Cannabis and Driving: A Review of the Literature and Commentary
1999 European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA): Literature Review of the Relation between Drug Use, Impaired Driving, and Traffic Accidents
1993 US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration: Marijuana and actual driving performance
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