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Washington marijuana legalization includes unscientific DUID provision

While legalization in Washington and Colorado is likely to bring prices down and hurt Mexican drug cartels, it looks like the authorities in Washington will keep the flow of people to prison healthy. In California, the police must have evidence of impaired driving first and have reason to rule out alcohol. It sounds like in Washington they only need to stop you and ask you to give blood. The result will be to make it a lot easier to round people up.

What no one is telling you about Washington’s marijuana legalization – Seattle Political Buzz | Examiner.com

One of the worst parts is the DUID (driving under the influence of drugs) provision and the zero tolerance clause for those under the age of 21 despite that people under 21 can legally possess medical marijuana. Medical marijuana patients and recreational users can now be charged with DUID for being above the designated 5 ng (nano-gram) / ml (milliliter) THC blood content limit (or a ZERO tolerance 0 ng/ml limit for those under 21) which means users will be instantly guilty of a DUID and will have their constitutional right to a fair trial revoked if they refuse a police blood draw. Under previous laws the system required law enforcement to prove impairment in court for a guilty verdict to occur.

This blood limit is not supported by any legitimate science either. The U.S. Department of Transportation concluded that “it is not possible to conclude anything about a drivers impairment on the basis of his/her plasma concentrations.” Other government studies from the National Library of Medicine have gone to show this 5 ng amount can be present in your blood days after using marijuana making arrest for being completely sober while driving a large possibility.