Law Enforcement Learn How To Spot Drivers Under Influence Of Drugs
DETROIT (WWJ) - Arresting drunk drivers is pretty much a black and white issue, but a driver under the influence of drugs can be harder to spot. But, WWJ's Rob Sanford reports that may be changing.
The Michigan State Police have launched a training program to teach troopers on ways to test to check if a driver is under the influence of drugs.
The training is a three-week course that will instruct officers how to take a blood pressure and what to spot in a persons eyes who may be under the influence. The training would also require those trained to carry some medical items in their cruisers, such as a stethoscope.
Michael Prince, Director of the State Office of Highway Safety Planning, said the new course is critical right now.
"Drugs were involved in 119 of the state's 871 traffic fatalities in 2009 and in 2010 drug-involved fatalities increased by 29 percent with 153 motorists killed," Prince said.
One of the officers already trained is Jeremy Peters, who said they are being called "doctor cops." He explained some of the things the course teaches officers.
"Certain drugs affect the eyes in certain ways. Some of them make pupils dilate, some make them constrict, some will cause a horizontal gaze and some will raise your blood pressure," Peters said.
The initial course is training 15 state and local police officers, along with five prosecutors, to better recognize the signs of drug related impairment.
