In Canada, the medical use of cannabis has been legal since 2001, and the recreational use of cannabis has been legal since 2018. Just like driving under the influence of alcohol over a certain limit is illegal, so is driving while under the influence of drugs.
In British Columbia, police officers have roadside breathalyzers they can use to determine if a person is above the legal Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) limit or not.
When it comes to someone driving high, if a police officer suspects someone may be driving high, they will conduct a Standard Field Sobriety Test (SFST). If the officer thinks the person is under the influence after the test has been completed, they may require them to do one of three things; submit to a Drug Recognition Expert, provide a bodily fluid sample or get a blood sample. All of these tests would be completed at a police station.
While there have been many studies done to determine the use of recreational cannabis and its effects on driving, there has been little research done with regard to the use of medical cannabis.
In general, there is no solid crash-based evidence that can link cannabis use to an increased risk of getting into an accident.
When it comes to the drug-impaired driving laws in Canada that were strengthened after the legalization of cannabis in 2018, there were no exceptions made to consider medical cannabis users.
This is because the Criminal Code has never made exceptions for any kind of prescription drug use and its effect on driving.
But the thing is, no other prescription drug is being compared to alcohol-based offences the same way cannabis is. This could be because it was only recently that cannabis became legal, and before that, it had negative connotations surrounding its use.
Since medical cannabis users do not have any sort of exemption, if drivers who use medical cannabis test positive for THC in their system above the legal limit, they are criminally charged for using cannabis as directed by a doctor.
There is currently no exception for medical cannabis in drug-impaired driving cases, but if you have any questions or are facing current drug-impaired driving offences do not hesitate to contact our office.
