Howard County DUID Stops

A DUI drug charge can occur when someone is pulled over for driving under the influence of drugs or a mix of drugs and alcohol. This particular charge can involve many different types of drugs including everything from cocaine, heroin, marijuana, oxytocin to over-the-counter drugs or drugs prescribed by a doctor. As long as a person’s driving is affected by the drug, whether prescribed or not, an individual can be pulled over and potentially charged with driving under the influence of drugs.

Therefore, if you are stopped and pulled over it is important for a person to contact a Howard County DUI drug lawyer right away to ensure they can combat the charges against them.

Causes of a Stop

Officers will look to see if a person is driving in an abnormal or unsafe way before conducting a DUI drug stop in Howard County. If a person is pulled over by an officer for their driving and the officer finds that their driving has been hindered by a drug or multiple drugs, even something as simple as Benedryl, that person can be charged with a DUID.

A DUID stop in Howard involves the prohibition against driving and the use of any drug, including contraband things like a substance or something that a doctor has prescribed to you, that can affect a person’s ability to operate a motor vehicle. These drugs can include something a person takes for sleep, anxiety, stress, depression, or even blood pressure, and can come with warnings that would advise a person to be aware of the operation of a motor vehicle. These warnings are to inform a person of the risks of taking the drug and driving, so if the person looks at the label and still chooses to get behind the wheel, or does not see the label, they are liable because the warning is there.

Process

Similarly to a standard DUI stop, the initial phase of a DUID stop is the observation of the vehicle—to observe if a person is weaving across traffic or speeding and to pull them over if they are. The next step is to ask for the person’s license and registration.

At a DUID stop in Howard County, the officer may assert that a person could have bloodshot, watery eyes or a stammered speech. Then, the officer may say that they observe an odor of alcohol, an odor of drug use like marijuana, which is a potent drug, or they see a drug contraband in plain sight—a needle or something that they would refer to as a carrier for drugs bags and a used gel capsule, all things that they are trained to notice.

If and when they ask the person to step out of the vehicle, they can still put them through the same standard field sobriety tests of a DUI stop, but they could also call a DRE, which is a Drug Recognition Expert, to the scene. Additionally, they may ask the person to submit to a breath test or a blood test.