Patients, ready to lose your Colorado driver’s license?

If you are a medical marijuana user in the State of Colorado and drive a car, get ready to lose your driver’s license. This legislative session, Senate Bill 12-117 is pending and was introduced by State Senator Steve King (steve.king.senate@state.co.us) from Grand Junction. One of the penalties imposed by this bill is if your blood test reports 5 nanograms or greater of THC in your blood, you will lose your driver’s license and have a DUI-D/DWAI-D Per Se conviction on your driving record—even if you’re not impaired. This is a called a Per Se law (Per se is Latin for “by itself”). So “by itself” having a certain nanogram level will be against the law and is sufficient enough evidence to find you guilty of a crime. Currently this is NOT the law in Colorado.

No one supports driving while impaired by marijuana or driving under the influence of marijuana. If the government can prove you were “[l]ess able than (you) ordinarily would have been, either mentally or physically, or both mentally and physically, to exercise clear judgment, sufficient physical control, or due care in the safe operation of a vehicle,” then you can be found guilty of Driving While Ability Impaired or if worse, then DUID (marijuana). That is different from being charged with and found guilty of DUID-Per Se. With the Per Se law the government need not show any impairment, and you would have to show that the blood test the government used on you was invalid, ergo, that you really didn’t have 5ng or more of THC in your blood because the test was wrong. In reality there are many people walking around with 5ng or higher levels of THC in their blood due to longevity of medicating and other physical reasons.

There is even a disagreement among professionals as to at what level, if any, you can measure impairment from THC in the blood. The legislature now is trying to set a nanogram level so if you as a driver are asked to take a blood test the government will take away your driver’s license if you have a 5ng level of THC. If you don’t take the blood test when asked, you will lose your driver’s license for at least one full year with absolutely NO driving allowed.

Call your legislator and tell him/her: (1) you are a medical marijuana patient; (2) you do not drive while impaired; and (3) cannot afford to lose your license; but (4) will probably have 5ng or more THC in your blood because you medicate frequently. This bill will pass unless you call and talk with your state senator or house member.

Ann Toney, P.C. is a Denver-based law firm that focuses on medical marijuana business law and marijuana defense; and defending people charged with driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs (DUI/DUID). Ann Toney can be contacted via phone or web at (303) 399-5556 and www.anntoneylaw.com.