MARIJUANA HIGH ON PRIORITY LIST

In an effort to control marijuana use, Colorado legislators are
proposing a DUI blood-content level to control high drivers. Because
medical-marijuana use has increased in the state, lawmakers want to
ensure users aren't taking advantage of the registry despite the
opposition which argues that this is just another step toward
legalization in its similarity to alcohol guidelines.

If the rules are implemented, high drivers will receive DUIs if they
test positive for five or more nanograms of tetrahydrocannabinol
(THC), the primary psychoactive substance in marijuana, within two
hours of being pulled over. In other words, users would have to be
placed in some sort of limbo while officers determined their level of
cannabinoid intoxication. This could be tricky for police departments
and jailhouses employees who might not be trained in understanding
more long-term marijuana effects, which would result in a waste of
time and resources.

In terms of behavior, marijuana use is more difficult to pinpoint
than alcohol use. The police have developed a fairly accurate system
for pinpointing drunk drivers, i.e. they swerve and exhibit signs of
absent-mindedness. In 2010, an Israeli lab conducted a simulated
experiment comparing drunk and drivers on marijuana. The results
showed that stoned drivers tend to drive slower and more cautiously
"because they have a different sense of time" while drunk drivers, of
course, exhibited less caution considering their lack of
self-awareness. Both drivers are dangerous but there's no denying the
high driver is less of an exhibitionist.

As a result, the police could very well be prone to pulling over more
people for minute reasons. An elderly driver, for example, could
mirror a person who has smoked a joint 10 minutes before getting
behind the wheel. With so many factors to consider, Colorado's law
has a strong possibly of unnecessarily increasing police involvement
on the road. It's a clear economic illustration of wasted investment,
unless law enforcement officials can come up with a more
comprehensible picture of how a high driver behaves and if they are
really dangerous.

Ultimately, the progressive Colorado lawmakers have a good idea in
principle. In states that have legalized medical marijuana, there
should be an effort made to counterbalance those who take advantage
of the system. But a substance such as marijuana is still shrouded in
mystery and without a concentrated attempt by officials to further
understand it, a law of this degree will have no viable use.