Substantiating British research from many years ago, a car crash study reported on May 20, 2019 in the online version of the journal Addiction, found no statistically significant relationship between drivers testing positive for Δ-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) or other drugs and those who did not in contributing to a motor vehicle collisions.
The study was based on 3005 injured drivers and police reports on 2318. In particular, the findings found no statistically significant relationship between testing positive for THC and the risk of motor vehicle crash responsibility. The Canadian scientists who conducted the study, led by Vancouver emergency physician Jeff Brubacher, “suggest[s] that the impact of cannabis on road safety is relatively small at present time.” They also reported that drivers with blood alcohol concentrations of 0.08 percent or more (at or above the current legal limit for alcohol in most states) were much more likely to be responsible for crashes.
The final conclusion of the study of non-fatally injured motor vehicle drivers in British Columbia, Canada, there was no evidence of increased crash risk in drivers with THC levels of less than 5ng/mL and a statistically non-significant increased risk of crash responsibility in drivers with THC levels equal to or greater than 5ng/mL.
Read more in the actual abstract of this study available through PubMed.gov or a more detailed summary of the same in the online magazine, “Reason.”
About the Author: Steven Oberman has been licensed in Tennessee since 1980, and successfully defended over 2,500 DUI defendants. Among the many honors bestowed upon him, Steve served as Dean of the National College for DUI Defense, Inc. (NCDD) and currently serves as chair of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers DUI Committee. Steve was the first lawyer in Tennessee to be Board Certified as a DUI Defense Specialist by the NCDD.
He is the author of DUI: The Crime & Consequences in Tennessee, updated annually since 1991 (Thomson-West), and co-author with Lawrence Taylor of the national treatise, Drunk Driving Defense, 8th edition (Wolters Kluwer/Aspen). Steve has served as an adjunct professor at the University of Tennessee Law School since 1993 and has received a number of prestigious awards for his faculty contributions. He is a popular international speaker, having spoken at legal seminars in 30 states, the District of Columbia and three foreign countries. After being named a Fulbright Scholar, Steve was honored to teach as an Adjunct Professor at the University of Latvia Law School in the capital city of Riga, Latvia during the Spring Semester of 2019.
For information about how to contact the author, please visit his website.
