A Legal Breakdown Of I-502’s DUI-C Provision

I saw the following post on Washington N.O.R.M.L.’s Facebook Page and figured it was worth posting for a discussion:

MORE from lawyer Alex Newhouse and I-502 and the DUI-C provision

I-502 puts into place a 5ng per se DUI law. Almost ALL users will fall below this if they use marijuana responsibly. A few legitimate patients may never fall below this, but if they take a couple of added precautions and do not drive impaired, their risk of DUI will be very low for a number of reasons. Right now, a DUI conviction can be obtained on any amount of active THC and the officer’s testimony. And right now patients only have an affirmative defense to possession. I-502 will make a better world for patients and put a stop to recreational users taking advantage of the system for legal protection.

Third, there is NO SUCH THING as an automatic DUI. A suspect can always challenge the stop and can always go to trial and question the evidence against him.

Fourth, there is no ZERO tolerance DUI under I-502. Absent impairment, a person under 21 can be charged with a misdemeanor if he has under 5ng of active THC in his system. This crime does not count as a prior when considering subsequent DUI penalties and is often times dealt away without a conviction. I-502 essentially creates the same tolerance for children using marijuana as we currently have for children using alcohol. The main difference is that many common over the counter medicines have alcohol in them, and so it is appropriate to have the .02 limit for alcohol and .00 for THC. This encourages our children to hang out with the right crowds, to NOT use marijuana, and to not drive impaired.