DUI Drug Cases in Baltimore

DUI drug charges are much less common than DUI alcohol charges. Convictions for DUI drug cases tend to be harder to come by as well. There is no drug “per se” law like the alcohol “per se” law. What this means is there is a specific law for a DUI alcohol saying you cannot operate a motor vehicle with a breath alcohol content of .08 or higher.

There is no equivalent law for drug impairment in Maryland. For DUI drug cases in Baltimore, the state always has to prove impairment, which from the state’s perspective is usually a lot tougher than proving a .08 or higher breath content when an individual submits to a breath test. Despite the relative difficulty of proving a drug DUI, it is very important to have the counsel of a Baltimore DUI drug lawyer when facing these charges.

Possible Scenarios for Baltimore DUID Charges

There are basically two scenarios where an individual may be charged with DUID in Baltimore. The first is if an individual refuses to submit to a Breathalyzer test at the police station. In that case, officers will sometimes charge the drug-impaired driving offenses under the theory that since you did not take the test they do not know whether you were drunk or high. That is a very weak theory and the prosecution should rarely be able to prove their case on that particular theory.

The other times where officers will charge DUI drug is where they actually suspect drug impairment. That can be a case where they bring in a drug recognition evaluator and do an interview with the suspected DUI drug driver, or where an individual is asked to submit blood, which indicates the presence of narcotics. These are the two basic scenarios where an individual will be charged with drug-impaired driving in Maryland.

It is possible to be the subject of a DUI drug case in Baltimore, even if the drug in question is legal and was legally obtained. to be charged with a DUID in Baltimore, someone can be under the influence of either an illegal drug or a prescription medication.

Substances That Can Lead to a DUI Arrest

Basically any kind of illegal substance that causes impairment can trigger a drug-impaired driving case in Baltimore. The statute does not state the drug must be legal or illegal, the focus of the impaired-driving statute really is impairment. If the state can show that the driver is high on marijuana, cocaine, heroin, prescription medication, or some strange drug interaction, all of those are legitimate ways for the state to prove drug-impaired driving in Maryland.

Marijuana-related DUI drug cases in Baltimore are extraordinarily rare. Ever since Maryland decriminalized marijuana, the number of cases has remained small. It is very rare for police officers in Baltimore to charge impaired driving based solely on marijuana.

How an Officer Looks for Evidence of Drug Use

A police officer will talk to the driver, to see how the driver behaves and interacts and whether they are disoriented or confused during the conversation. They will also check for the odor of drugs, such as freshly burned marijuana, it could be an indicator that the operator of that vehicle is impaired. If they see any drugs in the vehicle or if they find drugs on the driver, that is usually going to trigger an impaired-driving investigation as well.

Drug DUI charges in Baltimore may be prioritized over alcohol DUI cases. Or officers may be looking to make DUI arrests and not be terribly concerned whether it is impairment by alcohol, an illegal drug, or prescription drugs.

Differences Between DUID Stops and Standard DUI Stops

The initial DUID stop, up to the point of arrest, is going to be identical to a standard DUI alcohol stop. The officer is going to stop the vehicle, generally for some type of traffic infraction, and they are going to detect the presence of alcohol or drugs based on conversation with the driver, odor, the driver’s demeanor, or the field sobriety test results. They will then arrest the individual. At this point DUID and DUI cases do start to differ.

In an alcohol-impaired driving case, the officer will take the individual back to the police station and ask them to blow into a Breathalyzer. In a drug-impaired case the officer may or may not choose to do that. What they will usually do next is ask the individual to speak to a drug recognition evaluator, who is an officer with specialized training in the detection of impairment by drugs. That officer will conduct an interview with the individual suspected of a Baltimore DUI drug. Based on that interview, the officer may then request the suspect submit a blood sample. Those are the main differences between drug and alcohol DUIs.

Field Sobriety Tests

Officers will use field sobriety tests in drug DUI cases. If an officer asks an individual to do field sobriety tests, usually they have not decided whether it is a drug-impaired or an alcohol-impaired driving offense. Therefore, the standards for a field sobriety test that you see in alcohol DUI cases are also going to be used in drug-impaired driving cases.