Show of Hands

He is driving like a maniac, BEFORE taking the drug. He’s on his way to get it.

He’s taken the drug lots of times in the past. He’s driving like a maniac because he’s addicted to it. If he’s addicted to a drug, then he is under its influence.

is it still in his system?

That’s kind of the wrong question, in the context of this take on addiction and substance abuse.
He’s behaving erratically because it’s not in his system, because his addicted brain is affecting his behavior to get the drug.
Later, after he’s high, he’ll behave erratically because it’s in his system.
But he’s always under the influence of the drug.

Think of it like an abused spouse. They’re always being influenced by their abuser- whether the abuser is in the room or not.

I did not understand that. Basically the man I met was taking the prescribed medication when was it supposed to be driving while taking that medication

Milk, you make a good logical point. Yes, he is always under the influence.

However, I don’t think that fits the *legal* definition. Legally, I believe he is off the hook.

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Of course, he is still guilty of reckless driving. That’s a different charge from DUI.

I’m rarely asking for a factual answer about what the law currently says. If that was the limit of the question I would have posted it on Quora.

Fair point.

Something about the wording of this question led me to believe you were asking for the legal answer.

It’s interesting as a broader question, however.

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Reckless*

A man when I was waiting for the doctor got a ticket for driving under the influence of his medication. A reckless driver is a reckless driver. How are things going for you and keeping you in prayer

Interesting thought.

Had an addict run briskly across the street to get within inches of my face and then ask me for $10. I said no and then he quickly sprinted to the next person he saw. He was so desperate.

How sad. 😪

How sad that people do this to themselves for no good reason whatsoever. But let’s make drugs even more easily available.

The same drugs people are pushing to legalize were widely available in the 1800’s and the early 1900’s.
It didn’t work out well then- which is why they were banned in the first place.
But sure- it will work out great this time around 🙄

You know what is really sad? All the people that drug addicts rob, batter, and kill. And the babies that are born addicted and sick because their “mothers” are drug addicts. I’ll use my compassion for those people.

@MrMilkdud
Exactly!! I think about that a lot. Our ancestors made some things illegal because they saw what it did to people. But we are arrogant and think we always know better than they did. Actually, I think hedonism is the biggest factor. At this point, I’m not sure I would care all that much if the pleasure seekers (drug addicts, etc.) really only hurt themselves. Unfortunately, that is nor the case at all.

I was in the doctors office an older man got a ticket for driving under the influence of his medications. Driving impaired. But I think he’s got a DWI he was driving under the influence

I wish we could consider more options than making everything over-the-counter or a felony to possess.

For example: make most drugs available by prescription and allow some doctors with the appropriate licenses to write prescriptions for recreational use. Selling drugs to someone who doesn’t have a prescription should be a felony and writing a prescription for someone who is not already addicted should also be a felony.

All that would do is guarantee those few doctors with recreational licenses become multimillionaires.
You’re effectively handing them a state mandated monopoly on dealing drugs.
Beyond that, I don’t see what your proposal would improve for anyone.

It would give current addicts a reliable source of whatever they are addicted to that is of consistent quality and not cut with rat poison. The price would not be insane.

This would take the captive market away from illegal drug dealers and keep the punishment severe for seeking new customers. The net effect being a reduction in the rate at which new people become addicted.