Earlier this year, the San Diego Police Department (SDPD) began to use the Drager 5000. This machine was created to help police officers detect drivers who are driving while impaired from drugs.
More particularly, the machine is mainly used to detect drivers who are under the influence of marijuana. In November of 2016, California voted to make marijuana legal throughout the state. This new rise in legalization of marijuana leads to greater chances of driving under the influence of marijuana. This device will also be able to detect illegal and prescribed drugs as well.
The Drager 5000 uses a sample of saliva to detect drugs in a person’s system. If you are pulled over, or stopped at a roadblock, and the officer detects you are under the influence of something, the officer will give you a test to detect if some substance is in your body. If the detection device detects that you have drugs in your system, you will be offered a Drager 5000 test.
The Drager 5000 will only detect substances that are presently in the body. If someone has smoked marijuana a few days prior to being pulled over, that marijuana should not be detected by the device. As of now, the plan is to only use the machine at roadblocks.
Defense attorneys argue the test results from the Drager 5000 should not be admitted into court because it only tests for if something is in your system, not the quantity. Defense attorneys want to only see blood and urine tests admitted into evidence at court because these tests can register how much marijuana is in the system, not just if any bit of marijuana is in the system.
The Los Angeles Police Department has been using this machine for years and there is a pilot program in Denver, Colorado for the machine. If the Drager 5000 is able to detect drivers under the influence with great accuracy, we expect this device will be used nationwide. To read more about the Drager 5000 and the use of it by the SDPD, visit https://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/SDPD-Drugs-Driving-Test-Sobriety-Marijuana–416361023.html
About the Author:
Victor Carmody has been licensed in Mississippi since 1980 and has tried over 12,000 DUI cases including every county in Mississippi and in 23 other states. He has presented DUI seminars in 15 states and 4 foreign countries. Mr. Carmody is considered by many as the best DUI attorney in Mississippi.
Vic Carmody is an original Founding Regent and served as Dean of the National College for DUI Defense from 2001-2002. He currently serves as a Fellow of the college and is active as an instructor during the summer trial college at Harvard Law School. Vic currently serves as DUI chairman for continuing education seminars for the University of Mississippi. He is the course director at Mississippi College School of Law for the Master’s Criminal Trial Advocacy program with an emphasis in DUI trials.
He is the original and now co-author of Understanding DUI Scientific Evidence, 1st and 2nd editions, Mississippi DUI: Law & Practice, and the Mississippi Criminal Trial Practice Forms manual, part of Thomson West’s “Mississippi Practice Series.”
The author would like to thank his law clerk, Lee Smith, for his contributions to this article.
If you would like to contact the author, please visit: https://www.mississippidui.com
