Marijuana Legalization Leads to Deadly Car Crash Increases

(Fall 2016) Since Washington State legalized marijuana in 2012, researchers have found that the number of fatal auto accidents involving drivers who had recently used marijuana jumped from 8% in 2013 to 17% in 2014. Additionally, over 15% of drivers associated with a fatal accident in 2014 had recently used the drug.

The data also showed that legal limits for marijuana have been difficult to accurately set. Scientific studies have cannot reliably determine the point at which a driver becomes impaired by marijuana.  Additionally, the level of THC in one’s system may decrease below the legal limit of impairment before a blood sample is collected.  All this could mean that some drivers could be wrongfully charged for driving impaired and other unsafe drivers are being released. The American Automobile Association (AAA) is advocating a two-step process for law enforcement to determine impairment by using both a chemical test as well as checking behavioral and physiological reactions.

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