Drug crimes can lead to serious trouble for you and for others. Driving while being drugged is a risk that you shouldn’t take, but it’s one that many people do. Drugged driving can, and does, lead to accidents, injuries and death. If you cause a drug-related collision, you could be held liable for injuries that you cause.
Interestingly, the number of drivers impaired by drugs while behind the wheel has been increasing in Tennessee. According to data from 2010 to 2015, the number of deaths caused by crashes involving drug-impaired drivers went up by 89%.
The increase in drug abuse throughout the United States may play a role in this increase. Perhaps more surprising is the fact that these fatal drugged driving cases have now overtaken drunk driving cases. In 2015, for example, 174 people were killed in crashes when a driver was found to be under the influence of drugs, whereas only 136 fatalities were from alcohol.
The problem with enforcing DUIs for drugged drivers is that it can be hard to determine if they were or were not impaired. Drugs don’t impact everyone the same, and there are no uniform standards for deciding what is necessary to show drugged driving and impairment.
Tennessee’s officers have been training to better recognize drug-impaired drivers, but if you’re tested and have any level of drugs in your system, you could be charged. It’s important that you have your attorney look into the case and do what they can to protect you against an unfair sentence, especially since drug use does not equal impairment.