LAW TAKES RIGHT STAND AGAINST DRUGGED DRIVING

Wisconsin's drugged driving law is a welcome addition to the state's
efforts to make the roadways safer.

The drugged driving law makes it illegal to drive with any amount of
cocaine, heroin, methamphetamines or recently ingested marijuana in your
system.

It's likely that many Wisconsin citizens already believed it was illegal to
drive while drugged, as it is illegal to drive while drunk. But it wasn't.

To clarify, drugged drivers did not necessarily get off scot-free. They
could be prosecuted for driving while impaired, but only if impairment
could be proved. They could also be prosecuted for reckless or negligent
driving, if their performance on the road warranted arrest.

But there was, until the new law took effect last month, no prohibition
against driving with illegal drugs in your system. That was a significant
hole in the state statutes.

The change brings the state's position on drugged driving in line with its
correct stand against drunken driving. Fail a breath or chemical test for
alcohol in your system, and you're in big legal trouble. And now, fail a
test for drugs in your system, and you're in equally big trouble.

There is one difference. The law allows a .08 level of alcohol before a
driver is legally drunk. There is no allowable level for drugs.

Among those who deserve credit for persuading lawmakers to pass the law are
Michelle and Bill Logemann, whose car was struck at a Milwaukee
intersection in 2001 by a minivan driven by a man on cocaine. Mrs. Logemann
was pregnant at the time. She had an emergency Caesarean section after the
crash. Her baby, Luke, died 12 hours later of head injuries from the crash.

The driver of the minivan, Paul D. Wilson, pleaded guilty to homicide by
negligent use of a vehicle and recklessly causing great bodily harm. But
prosecutors were unable to proceed against him for driving with cocaine in
his system because they could not prove impairment with scientific
certainty, even though almost everyone who looked at the case believed
cocaine contributed to the crash.

The Logemanns contacted legislators to raise support for a drugged driving
law. The legislation was nicknamed the Baby Luke law. It's a law that every
Wisconsin driver should obey.