You know the drill, of course. We suspect that virtually every Colorado motorist has grown closely attuned to the ramped-up police efforts to spot, arrest and criminally convict drunk drivers that regularly feature across the state. We occasionally spotlight those...
Month: January 2018
Standardized test for marijuana intoxication still elusive
The Colorado Department of Transportation says that "any amount of marijuana consumption puts you at risk of driving impaired" and warns that you cannot judge your own level of impairment. The official DUID threshold for marijuana is five nanograms of active...
Lawmakers are trying to make Colorado’s seat belt law stricter
Under current Colorado law, seat belt violations are considered a secondary offense, meaning police can only cite a driver for not wearing a seat belt if the driver is already pulled over for another alleged offense. Some Colorado lawmakers, however, are hoping to...
Research panel urges states to reduce DUI limit to 0.05 percent
How can society reduce the number of drunk-driving fatalities? The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration was looking for evidence-based answers, so it turned to a panel from the nonprofit National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine and...
Judicially, criminal lineups are a big deal: Why?
If you are in criminal custody in Colorado and instructed to enter a room at the police station along with several other individuals to participate in a lineup, you might reasonably have some concerns. There is an alleged eyewitness to criminal conduct -- e.g., a sex...
Sessions nixes federal marijuana policy — is a crackdown coming?
Even though more states are starting to legalize the recreational use of marijuana under state law, it continues to be very much illegal under federal law. In the past, these conflicting laws generally weren’t a problem, largely because of an Obama-era policy that...
Basic fact about drunk driving: virtually anyone can be charged
There are a number of notable facets surrounding a police stop and subsequent treatment of a Colorado motorist suspected of driving under the influence of alcohol. The novelty of the experience and sheer anxiety associated with it, for example. A DUI encounter is a...
New legislation hopes to rid Colorado of red-light cameras
While some people believe red-light cameras are a useful tool for making our roads safer, there are a great many who think cities simply use them to drive revenue. Regardless of which side you may fall on, however, there is no denying that it can be extremely...
Critics’ reaction to proposed 0.05 BAC threshold
As our readers across Colorado and elsewhere know, the legal limit for behind-the-wheel intoxication in the state and nationally is a blood-alcohol concentration of 0.08. Anything at or above that level as determined by a blow into a breathalyzer or a blood draw will...
CO lawmakers trying to close perceived loophole in texting law
Last summer when Colorado’s new texting-while-driving law went into effect, many were surprised by the new language of the law ― particularly since it appeared to create a loophole that legalized texting while driving for some. Now, Colorado lawmakers are attempting...