June 2021 Study Warns of Increasing Risk of Marijuana-Impaired Motor Vehicle Accidents
Marijuana is legal for both medicinal and recreational use in the State of Illinois. Since January 1, 2020, Illinois allows anyone over the age of 21 years to purchase marijuana for recreational use from licensed sellers without having to show a medical marijuana card. For more, see Recreational Marijuana is Legal in Illinois: The Rising Danger of a Drugged Driving Crash.
The State of Illinois also has laws in place regarding driving a motor vehicle while under the influence of marijuana or cannabis: it is illegal for anyone to operate a motor vehicle in the State of Illinois with a THC blood concentration at or above (a) five (5) nanograms or more per milliliter of whole blood or (b) ten (10) nanograms or more per milliliter of other bodily substance. Read, “Illinois DUI Fact Book 2021,” printed by authority of the State of Illinois, Jesse White, Secretary of State, October 2020, DSD A 118.24 (“Fact Book”).
Cannabis, or marijuana, can result in impaired driving and a criminal arrest in the State of Illinois for driving while impaired. Quoting from the Fact Book, page 8:
- A driver may not operate a motor vehicle while impaired by the use of cannabis, whether used medically or recreationally. Cannabis may only be transported in a vehicle in a sealed, odor-proof and child resistant container. No driver or passenger may use cannabis in a motor vehicle.
- If a police officer stops a vehicle and the officer has reasonable suspicion to believe the person is impaired by the use of cannabis, the driver must submit to field sobriety testing and/or validated roadside chemical tests. Refusal to submit to testing or failure of field sobriety tests and/or validated roadside chemical tests will result in the suspension of the person’s driver’s license.
- Driving while impaired by the use of cannabis or illegal transportation of cannabis in a motor vehicle may result in the loss of driving privileges, and for a medical cannabis registry card holder, the revocation of the driver’s medical cannabis card.
June 2021 Studies Released: Correlation Between Legalization and Increased Danger of Car Crash
On June 17, 2021, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and the Highway Loss Data Institute released research studies that analyzed how motor vehicle crash rates have been impacted in states where marijuana has been legalized for recreational use. See, “Changes in traffic crash rates after legalization of marijuana: results by crash severity,” C. M. Farmer; S.S. Monfort; A.N. Woods, Institute for Highway Safety June 2021.
These June 2021 studies confirm that motor vehicle crash rates rose in states where marijuana has been legalized for recreational use and thereafter sold at retail stores.
- There was a six percent (6%) increase (“spike”) in motor vehicle injury crash rates;
- There was a four percent (4%) increase in fatal motor vehicle injury crash rates, a figure viewed as “statistically significant” by the researchers; and
- Drivers who had marijuana and alcohol in their systems are were five times (500%) more likely to sustain bodily injuries in a motor vehicle accident that will require hospitalization (as compared to drivers who had drank alcohol alone, who were found to be three times (300%) more likely to need hospitalization after a crash.)
Law Enforcement’s Limitations in Testing Drivers for Marijuana after Illinois Crash
For Illinois accident victims harmed by drivers impaired by marijuana and/or alcohol, the ability of a police report to confirm the blood alcohol content (BAC) for alcohol or the blood concentration of THC for marijuana use is vital to establishing that the driver was in breach of his or her duty of care and safety and thereby negligently caused the crash.
Police reports can be extremely important to accident victims in their pursuit of justice in the aftermath of a severe or deadly car crash involving an impaired driver.
Law enforcement can be some of the first to arrive at the scene of the accident, and are professionally trained witnesses who can include detailed, vital information in their accident report. This can include field observations and sobriety testing of the driver who may have been driving impaired which can then be used to support the victim’s legal claims based upon Illinois personal injury laws.
However, today’s realities are that technologies are not as advanced for confirming cannabis impairment as they are for someone who has been driving drunk.
Illinois accident victims hurt by someone impaired by marijuana use are not able to rely on an Illinois police report in the same way as a crash victim hurt by a drunk driver.
There are several reasons for this, as cannabis / marijuana does not impact the human body in the same way that alcohol interferes with the body’s nervous system. In marijuana, there are different results depending not only upon the individual, but also in the way the cannabis is consumed (smoked, eaten), and the different types (strains) involved. See, “Testing drivers for cannabis is hard. Here’s why,” written by Alicia Wallace and published by CNN on January 2, 2020.
Investigation of Illinois Accident Claims For Driver Impairment
The new research studies released in June 2021 confirm the concerns of accident victim advocates and safety groups regarding the legalization of recreational marijuana and an increased risk of serious or fatal crashes caused by impaired drivers. For those driving Illinois’ roadways, it is vital to recognize an increased danger of an accident resulting from a driver who has chosen to get behind the wheel after using marijuana with or without alcohol.
Illinois accident victims will need experienced advocacy after any Illinois motor vehicle accident that may involve a driver impaired by cannabis or marijuana consumption since current technologies do not provide an easy methodology for confirming illegal THC impairment at the scene.
While the police report of the crash will be helpful in the pursuit of justice, particularly if an arrest is made based upon current Illinois impairment laws, proving negligence based upon marijuana use prior to the crash requires an in-depth investigation to find admissible evidence supporting the injury claim.
For more, read:
- Marijuana Accidents: Impaired Driving in Indiana and Illinois
- Truck Drivers and Drugs: Marijuana, Cocaine, and Meth are Top Three Drugs Found in FMCSA Commercial Driver Drug Testing
- Marijuana Semi-Truck Crashes: Pot, Cannabis Products, and Commercial Truck Drivers
- Commercial Truck Drivers Moving Loads Across the Country Given Notice by USDOT: Changing State Marijuana Laws Do Not Change Truck Driver Duty of Safety on US Roads
- Truck Driver Drug Use in Indiana and Illinois: High Risk of a Fatal Truck Crash Caused by Impaired Trucker.
If you or a loved one has been injured in an Illinois motor vehicle accident where driver impairment involving recreational marijuana use is suspected, then state personal injury laws provide avenues for justice for the accident victim and their loved ones. Please be careful out there!
