Washington's DUI statute prohibits driving under the influence of intoxicating liquor or "any drug". While an an alcohol related DUI is the most common type of DUI charge, people are routinely arrested and charged with driving while being under the influence of marijuana, cocaine, methamphetamine, even prescription medications and over the counter medicines such as cough syrup and cold medicines in combination with alcohol. It is not a defense to a DUI that one was only taking legal prescription medicines or over the counter drugs. RCW 46.61.502 prohibits the operation of a motor vehicle while under the influence of any drug or any combination of drugs and alcohol. A marijuana DUI, drug DUI, prescription medicine DUI or over the counter drug DUI needs to be taken just as seriously as an alcohol related DUI. A person arrested on this charge should contact a Washington marijuana or drug DUI lawyer as soon as possible.
While the same criminal statute applies to marijuana and drug DUIs as alcohol DUIs, there are some major differences, from how the crime is investigated, to how it is proven, to the involvement of the Department of Licensing.
A person suspected of driving under the influence of a drug will be investigated differently than one who is suspected of driving with a .08 breath or blood alcohol content. First, an officer with some extra training in drug recognition, a so called "drug recognition expert" (DRE), may be called to the scene. And while this officer may not be an "expert" in the way society generally views the term, his presence tends to add more validity to the final police report than it may have otherwise had. Once a decision has been made by the police that there is impairment due to drugs other than alcohol, it is likely that the person will be arrested and taken for a blood draw. Refusal to submit to a properly requested blood draw will have the same effects that a refusal to submit to a breath test would have. The main consequences would be a potential long term (one to two year) administrative license suspension and the fact of the refusal being admissible at any trial to show consciousness of guilt. See Implied Consent Laws.
A Washington marijuana or drug DUI is, in general, proven differently than an alcohol related DUI. One prong of the DUI statute allows for a conviction if a .08 or higher breath or blood alcohol content can be proven, irrespective of impairment. For drug related DUIs, impairment must be proven. As a result the blood analysis of marijuana levels, for example, tends to have less impact on a jury than a breath alcohol content of a .08 or greater would have. Jurors are preconditioned to have a visceral response to a .19 BAC whereas a blood test showing the existence of 24 ng/ml of Carboxy-THC is relatively meaningless. Thus the requirement of proving actual impairment, a requirement that is absent in many if not most alcohol based DUI cases.
Finally, the Washington Department of Licensing only gets involved in an administrative capacity if a person refuses a lawfully requested blood test. A positive blood draw, regardless of the levels found or the substances discovered, do not implicate an administrative license suspension. Contrast this to an alcohol based DUI arrest where a breath test over a .08 can lead to an administrative suspension from 90 days to two years.
A marijuana or drug related DUI is different in terms of investigation and ultimate proof required for a conviction, but the ramifications and consequences are the same. From jail to license suspensions to probation and drug treatment. See DUI Penalties. A person facing a drug DUI charge in Washington should contact a DUI lawyer as soon as possible.