DUID Victim Network
Two articles released last month reach starkly different conclusions about the effect of marijuana use on driving safety:
Brady, J.E., Li, G., Trends in Alcohol and Other Drugs in Fatally Injured Drivers in the United States, 1999-2010, American Journal of Epidemiology, January 29, 2014
Romano, E., Torres-Saavedra, P., Voas, R., Lacey, J.H., Drugs and Alcohol: Their Relative Crash Risk, Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, January 2014
The first has been widely quoted … READ MORE
This week we sent a letter to Governor Hickenlooper: Hickenlooper 3 It suggests ways of collecting, analyzing and publishing DUID data essential to understanding drugged driving in our state. It further suggests that the $7.1 million that Colorado is allocating to sponsor “research” to promote use of marijuana could be better spent solving our DUID data deficit.
The Denver Post agreed with some of our points, and issued an editorial of support
… READ MORETwo stories in the December 27, 2013 Denver Post tell Colorado what to expect in the coming years from the Post.
First, the sad story of Dora Gayton-Esparza, 35, and Daniela Medina-Gayton, 6. Dora was killed and Daniela was seriously injured by Johnny Cephas-Gilbert, 37. The Post reported that Cepahas-Gilbert was charged with vehicular homicide and vehicular assault, noting that he reeked of alcohol and marijuana when arrested.
We already know the outcome of this … READ MORE
Colorado’s legislature will convene January 8, 2014. So perhaps it’s timely to propose a DUID legislative wish list for the year. We will discuss each of these in separate blog entries over the next weeks and months.
1 DUID statistical analysis.
Create new statistical tracking tools to properly document the number of DUI and DUID arrests. This would include the ability to distinguish different types of drug categories in DUID arrests. This initiative could be … READ MORE
The short answer is that no one knows.
Critics of stricter DUID bills claim that, since Colorado’s DUI conviction rate is reported to be nearly 90%, there is no need for additional laws governing drugged driving.
There are two problems with that statement. First of all, Colorado’s current DUI law, C.R.S. 42-4-1301 (1), does not distinguish between alcohol-impaired driving (DUI) and drug-impaired driving (DUID). Therefore, Judicial data that are commonly cited for the 85% – … READ MORE