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AAA Study: Blood THC Levels After Smoking Pot Are Useless In Defining 'Too High To Drive' (arstechnica.com)

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: Blood tests that try to quantify marijuana use are in fact useless at assessing how impaired a driver is, according to a study by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety. The study found that people with low blood amounts of THC -- or delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, the main psychoactive component of pot -- may still act as if they're really stoned. On the other hand, some people may have THC measurements off the charts yet still act normally. The finding is critical because several states have already set legal limits for the amount of THC a person can have in their blood while driving. AAA concluded that such limits are "arbitrary and unsupported by science, which could result in unsafe motorists going free and others being wrongfully convicted for impaired driving." The conclusion echoes that of other researchers that also noted no correlation between blood THC levels and impairment. Still, there is a need to deter people from smoking pot while driving, AAA argues, as it can impair driving. It recommends that until scientifically valid measures of impairments are put into place, law enforcement should use a combination of behavior and psychological tests to assess whether drivers who use marijuana are safe to drive.

6 of 455 comments (clear)

  1. How about... by Izuzan · · Score: 5, Funny

    The officer plays an Amy Schumer skit. If the person laughs they are to high to drive.....

    1. Re:How about... by TheGratefulNet · · Score: 5, Funny

      But doing so would make AARP and voters mad

      for those cases, there's static routing.

      (wait, wut?)

      --

      --
      "It is now safe to switch off your computer."
    2. Re: How about... by BlackPignouf · · Score: 1, Funny

      On a related note : https://www.youtube.com/watch?... :D

    3. Re:How about... by onepoint · · Score: 4, Funny

      SUPER STAR ... now that's what I call kicking ass and citing sources

      --
      if you see me, smile and say hello.
  2. It's easy... by geekd · · Score: 4, Funny

    The hippie going 45 in a 65 zone is high.

    The dude sitting there waiting for the stop sign to turn green is high.

  3. Re:You need to set the cutoff somewhere by fustakrakich · · Score: 5, Funny

    Yeah well, I wish they would practice on their side of the road.

    --
    “He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”