Lack Of Accurate Marijuana Sobriety Tests Causing Challenges For Morden Police

[gb123]

Morden Police are experiencing the challenges of determining marijuana's influence on drivers.

During a Manitoba Public Insurance (MPI) checkstop on November 25, upon speaking with a driver, police detected an odour of marijuana on the driver's breath and noticed her eyes were glossy.

The female driver had advised officers that she had smoked a small quanity of marijuana roughly ten minutes before coming into the checkstop.

Police Chief Brad Neduzak said it was at this time the officers conducted a Standard Field Sobriety Test, which the driver passed.

"It's kind of like the alcohol test," said Neduzak. "Someone can have a drink or two and still pass."

He noted someone can still pass if they haven't had a considerable amount, but the effects of marijuana can slow down the motorist's reaction time.

At this time here aren't any guidelines for people who choose to use marijuana and drive, though the federal government is set to make cannabis legal this July.

Neduzak said they've been asked a number of questions about the rules, but the government is still working out all of the details.

"We do know they're working on a couple of instruments to test roadside, which are similar to the roadside devices that are used to detect alcohol," said Neduzak.

Neduzak said they have an officer already trained in roadside detection for drugs, able to conduct more advanced testing of drivers in the field. Neduzak added they're looking at training more officers in the future.

"At least we can try and stay ahead of the game a little bit and be ready to go when the new laws are rolled out," said Neduzak.

Officers also located a clear plastic bag of marijuana and numerous paraphernalia, which were seized for destruction. As a result of this incident no charges were laid.

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Below is the Morden Police report for November 13-27:

November 13th, 2017

Police were dispatched to a motor vehicle accident at Loren Drive and La Verendrye Boulevard around 3:00pm. An eastbound vehicle was stopped at the stop sign on Loren Drive when a second vehicle failed to see the vehicle stopped and ran into the back end of the first vehicle. The occupants of the first vehicle were transported to Boundary Trails Health Centre for observation complaining of sore necks. Both vehicles required towing from the scene.

November 15th, 2017

Sometime overnight, a vehicle was damaged while parked on 11th Street in Morden. The owner parked his 2008 red Honda Civic in the 100 block of 11th Street and returned in the morning to find someone had keyed the rear door on the driver’s side. Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to call the Morden Police Service at 822-4900, Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477, submit a secure tip online at www.manitobacrimestoppers.com or text “TIPMAN” plus your message to CRIMES (274637).

November 17th, 2017

Around 11:30 pm, police received a dispatch call to Tim Horton’s in Morden reporting an intoxicated male. Police attended and found a male sleeping in one of the booths. As police were trying to speak to the individual, he stood up and said he would walk home. Police tried to take hold of the individual at which time he slapped the officer’s hand and swore. Police took hold of the male and arrested him under the Intoxicated Persons Detention Act. While trying to handcuff the individual, he pulled his hand back and began to resist. The individual was placed on the ground and handcuffed. He was lodged in cells overnight until sober and released in the morning without charges.

November 19th, 2017

Police were on general patrol around 1:25 am travelling east on Thornhill Street when they observed a vehicle travelling in front of them veering back and forth in its lane. Police activated emergency lights and stopped the vehicle. While speaking with the driver, police observed an odor of liquor on his breath and requested he provide a sample of his breath on a roadside screening device. The test resulted in a fail and the driver was arrested for impaired driving. Subsequent breath samples were obtained and analyzed at 120 and 110 mg%. As a result, the 20-year-old Morden driver was charged with Driving Impaired and Driving over .08. His vehicle was impounded for 30 days and he will be appearing in Morden Provincial Court in January 2018.

November 19th, 2017

Police were called around 7:30 pm where an intoxicated male entered a residence uninvited and then left shortly after. Police attended and located a male outside of the residence that had been drinking. After speaking with him, police were satisfied that there was no intent by the individual and he was returned to his residence without charges.

November 20th, 2017

A vehicle was vandalized while parked in Rock’s Bar & Grill parking lot on November 18th. The incident occurred sometime between midnight and 2:00 am. The owner of a 1990 black Mercedes Benz advised that the front hood emblem had been broken off. Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to call the Morden Police Service at 822-4900, Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477, submit a secure tip online at www.manitobacrimestoppers.com or text “TIPMAN” plus your message to CRIMES (274637).

November 26th, 2017

Police were stationary on Thornhill Street conducting a Manitoba Public Insurance checkstop when a vehicle was observed to make a quick wide turn onto Thornhill Street and continued travelling westbound. Police pursued the vehicle and observed it to make quick movements in its lane and back. The vehicle was stopped and the driver advised of what police observed. The passenger indicated he had grabbed the steering wheel and admitted to consuming liquor. The driver was observed to have a strong odor of liquor on her breath, glassy eyes, slurred speech and was argumentative with police. The driver was asked how much she had to drink and she indicated “nothing”. When asked to exit the vehicle, the driver had slow deliberate movements. She was arrested for impaired driving and a demand was made to provide samples of her breath. Two breath samples were obtained resulting in readings of 180 and 160 mg%, double the legal limit. The 28-year-old female driver from Winkler was charged with Drive Impaired and Drive over .08. Her vehicle was impounded for 60 days and she will be appearing in Morden Provincial Court in January 2018.

 

[VIANARCHRIS]

Sounds like a good news story for us. She admitted to smoking 10 mins before driving, took a roadside test and passed. It would be interesting to know what she would have tested at in ng. It demonstrates to the public that smoking a joint does not mean you are impaired. Also the cops found a baggie and paraphernalia and didn't lay charges. Manitoba - who'd a thunk?

 

[legalcanada]

the baggie was probably empty good girl i'm surprised they didn't include a sentence like "marijuana can sometimes take 30 minutes or more to take full effect" to try and downplay her passing - was this in the sun?

 

[Farmer.J]

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Two Startups Developing a Breathalyzer for Pot
By Jenn Keeler - Special To Cannabis Culture on December 1, 2017
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CANNABIS CULTURE – Studies show driving with weed at the wheel isn’t as dangerous as driving after a round of shots, but in a reality rife with delusion and irrationality, law enforcement officials have promised zero tolerance for mixing cannabis and cars.

Still, it’s hard to prove that someone is driving high – unlike beer or wine, THC lingers in the system for days (sometimes weeks), long after any psychoactivity has passed. This does two things. First, it likely over-inflates how many car accidents are related to weed (when a news reports that the driver had cannabis “in their system” they can’t say if the person was truly impaired). Second, it prevents authorities from knowing whether someone was breaking the law. But several companies are working to fix this.

The Need for A Breathalyzer

Right now, no breathalyzer for pot exists. Instead, cops can pull you over on the assumption that you’re high. In some states, certain types or policeman are specially trained to sniff out cannabis – they put the driver through a roadside sobriety test designed for drugs (not merely marijuana but meth, heroin, cocaine, etc.). This works sometimes – police catch people who decided to dab and drive. But it also results in some level of unfairness. It’s not unheard of (or all that difficult) to fail a roadside sobriety test even when you’re stone-cold sober; some people’s nerves get the best of them.

All of this compounds the need for a breathalyzer for pot and a few companies are answering that call. Not only are these companies striving to create a breathalyzer, but they’re also striving to create the first one. It’s not exactly the Race to Space, but it’s interesting, nonetheless.

According to CBS, two of the companies tossing their hat into the ring include Hound Labs and Cannabix Technologies. Both of these companies are startups that are developing handheld, small devices complete with tubes. They are designed to be used similarly to alcohol breathalyzers, with the drivers blowing into the tube as the authorities gauge if they’ve consumed cannabis recently…very recently.



Hound Labs

Hound Labs, for their part, has already raised a lot of cheddar: they’ve amassed 8.1. million from the venture capital company Benchmark. This is the same company that funded Uber and Tinder, two companies that have seen wild success. With this financial backing, Hound Labs has already begun clinical trials with the help of the University of California, San Francisco.

The Hound device won’t only detect cannabis in the breath, but it’ll detect alcohol too. And, as the trials are proving successful, Hound Labs predicts that they’ll be selling their product by the end of the year. The device will cost between $600 and $800 and will be sold to police departments. Employers who want to purchase them will also be able to. They assume the market for the latter will rest in recreational states, states where employers may want to test bus drivers and delivery drivers before their shifts begin.

The way the device works is fairly simple: it detects the THC molecules in the breath, molecules that are present for about two hours after pot consumption. This is vital, as the two-hour window coincides with actual impairment. Other forms of testing, as alluded above, can determine whether a person consumed THC, but not when they consumed it. Urine, blood, and saliva samples might detect THC weeks later, well after any impairment has ended.

Hound Labs maintains that they’ve discovered a breakthrough that is one million times more sensitive than what is used to measure alcohol. This technology already exists – in the form of liquid chromatography mass spectrometers (LCMS) – but not in a transportable or economic feasibly form. Many of the existing LCMS machines are the size of Xerox machines – they wouldn’t fit in the average police car. Hound Labs is attempting to bring this technology to the masses by taking away its mass – their device is smaller than some cellphones.

Cannabix Technologies

Up north, a Canadian company is also working to develop the first breathalyzer for pot: Cannabix Technologies is working on a device that measures THC molecules in a manner similar to the one described above.

They’re slotted to sell later than Hounds Lab – a year to a year and a half, rather than by the end of the year. And they anticipate that their product will cost more, between $1000 to $1500 per device.

Cannabix has partnered with the Yost Research Group at the University of Florida to design a device based on “high-field mobility” and “mass spectrometry.” On their website, they state the reason behind their mission and the need for a product such as theirs. They write, “Medical and recreational marijuana use is becoming legal across various jurisdictions in North America and globally. This is presenting a significant challenge to law enforcement to keep our roads safe from drugged drivers. Current marijuana enforcement relies on an officer’s ‘opinion’ as to the impairment by marijuana – there is a need for a scientific approach that can accurately determine levels present in a non-invasive way.”

While alcohol breathalyzers determine the level of impairment – with authorities able to surmise, based on an individual’s BAC, whether you drank a glass of wine or a gallon – pot breathalyzers don’t work like this. They give a “yes” or “no” answer to the presence of THC with nothing in regard to the degree of that presence.

The above is important for drivers to keep in mind; any use, even one hit of a not-too-potent strain, can return a positive result. This is something to beware of if you’re going to reach for the bong before you reach for your car keys.

 

[VIANARCHRIS]

Neither of those devices will provide proof of impairment and cannot be used in court.

“Medical and recreational marijuana use is becoming legal across various jurisdictions in North America and globally. This is presenting a significant challenge to law enforcement to keep our roads safe from drugged drivers. Current marijuana enforcement relies on an officer’s ‘opinion’ as to the impairment by marijuana – there is a need for a scientific approach that can accurately determine levels present in a non-invasive way.”

I wonder if they just 'FORGOT' to include the stats showing cannabis impaired driving has been an issue over the past 100 years of prohibition? If there has been no epidemic of cannabis related crashes and injuries to this point, how do they figure it will suddenly change?

 

[Farmer.J]

Neither of those devices will provide proof of impairment and cannot be used in court.

I wonder if they just 'FORGOT' to include the stats showing cannabis impaired driving has been an issue over the past 100 years of prohibition? If there has been no epidemic of cannabis related crashes and injuries to this point, how do they figure it will suddenly change?

Because the government and friends are banking on the idea that Everyone will be smoking pot this July. They are going to use every resource they have to make sure they get rich. Start buying stocks in prisons because when legalization fails that's where the market will thrive.

 

[gb123]

now why add to it????
rather beat them a game they have no clue how to play and we've been doin it for ever!
and will continue to do so!
ppphhhtttt

yer beat!
and we will put you where you belong
..hangin on for any thing you can pull out of an already over fed market!
enjoy!

 

[VIANARCHRIS]

Because the government and friends are banking on the idea that Everyone will be smoking pot this July. They are going to use every resource they have to make sure they get rich. Start buying stocks in prisons because when legalization fails that's where the market will thrive.

LOL! Relax, buddy. No one is going to prison - unless you are 'organized crime' or selling to kids. Politicians and cops can say whatever they want, it's up to a judge to rule guilt 'beyond a reasonable doubt'. We just had a story on here this morning of folks making edibles and selling them on the street that ended in written warnings. Legalization will be a shit-show to begin with and we'll need to keep fighting for the system we want, but we'll be fine.

 

[TheRealDman]

Some device to detect when you smoked will still not prove impairment...he admits that himself.

Still, it’s hard to prove that someone is driving high – unlike beer or wine, THC lingers in the system for days (sometimes weeks), long after any psychoactivity has passed. This does two things. First, it likely over-inflates how many car accidents are related to weed (when a news reports that the driver had cannabis “in their system” they can’t say if the person was truly impaired).

 

[legalcanada]

fuck all these suits trying to exploit the people they spent decades throwing in jail and demonizing.

pieces of god damn shit the lot. i like the weedsels section and the list of cops/politicians now banking on pot. i hope all their businesses fail and they blow their brains out from stress

 

[The Hippy]

fuck all these suits trying to exploit the people they spent decades throwing in jail and demonizing.

pieces of god damn shit the lot. i like the weedsels section and the list of cops/politicians now banking on pot. i hope all their businesses fail and they blow their brains out from stress

yes...yes...yes....

 

[gb123]

fuck all these suits trying to exploit the people they spent decades throwing in jail and demonizing.

pieces of god damn shit the lot. i like the weedsels section and the list of cops/politicians now banking on pot. i hope all their businesses fail and they blow their brains out from stress

That got the goat and the hippy dancing

The truth hurts to eh..