Drugged Driving is a Threat to Motorist Safety « Houston Accident Attorney | Texas Personal Injury Lawyer Houston

Drugged Driving is a Threat to Motorist Safety

A new breed of impaired drivers is on our streets. As the numbers of people driving under the influence of alcohol decreases around the country and in Texas, the numbers of people driving under the influence of prescription drugs is actually increasing. Alcohol use as a factor in auto accidents has been on the decline, and in its place, there are now more instances of accidents occurring because the driver was on a combination of drugs at the time.

Prescription drug use is widespread. From painkillers to antidepressants, Americans are addicted to medications. Most people are on more than one medication, and they may not always know that combining these medications can induce drowsiness, fatigue and a host of other side effects. When a person like this gets into his car and begins to drive, the impact on driving can be almost the same that you could expect from a person driving with an alcohol level of above or greater than .08.

Unfortunately, it’s much harder to crack down on motorists using prescription drugs, than it is to keep alcohol-impaired drivers off the road. For instance, some medications may remain in the system for days and weeks, and it’s not always possible to prove that the driver has just taken the medication and begun driving. There are other complications in prosecuting these cases. When an impaired driver is involved in a accident, and the case goes before a jury, it’s hard to find jurors who don’t empathize with the defendant, since each of the jurors is probably on some prescription drug.

However there is some encouraging news. More and more states are clamoring for resources to help detect drugs in the system, including officers that are specially trained to detect prescription drugs in a person’s system.

Vuk Vujasinovic is a Houston car accident lawyer, representing injured victims of auto accidents around Texas and nationwide.