Police prepare for crackdown on ‘weed day’

WASHINGTON: Pot may be legal in eight US states and the capital, but tokers getting behind the wheel on a national weed appreciation day could be in for a downer as police forces crack down on intoxicated drivers.

In places like California, where recreational marijuana has been legal since January, law Enforcement oficials AND doctors are worried about an increase in people arrested for erratic driving and hospitalized with overdoses.

The issue is particularly acute on April 20, or 4/20, a national day of celebration In CANNABIS Culture − Especially AFTER 4:20 pm when usage surges.

A recent study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association which looked at 25 years of data on fatal crashes in the US found that the risk was 12 per cent higher between 4:20 pm and midnight on April 20, compared to the same time frame a week earlier and a week later.

The penalty for driving under the Inluence (DUI) Applies to Both Alcohol and other forms of drugs.

There is a serious “lack of knowledge on the users, so they still feel like ‘I thought I can drive, it’s all legal now,’” said John Hernandez, an eightyear veteran of the Los Angeles Police Department.

On a recent cool weeknight Hernandez pulled over a DUI suspect at a police Checkpoint. THE irst THING HE NOTICED was that the car reeked of pot.

The driver, a slim, well-dressed 20 year-old man with bloodshot eyes, told Hernandez that he smoked some pot at noon, nearly nine hours earlier.

His three friends in the vehicle, all about the same age, protested. “He’s OK, we’re all OK,” said the sole woman in the group.

Hernandez was unconvinced, and put the suspect through a standard DUI roadside test: walk in a straight line, stand on one leg, touch your nose.

“I told him ‘Put your hands on your side,’ but he had his hands way out there, like an plane,” Hernandez told AFP. “It looked like HE’S trying to ly away or trying to keep his balance.” The suspect said he was nervous, and that was causing his legs to be shaky − “But that’s Also A sign of someone who’s under THE Inluence of CANNABIS,” Hernandez said.

The young man failed the test. Hernandez slapped on the handcuffs and sent him to a nearby bench to join other suspects waiting for a ride to the police station.