[A] report shows that the expansion of the Vermont Drug Recognition Expert Program is resulting in more people being tested for drugged driving.
The state processed 197 toxicology reports for impaired drivers in 2014. It’s a sharp increase from nearly a decade earlier, in 2005, when there were just 16 toxicology results.
According to Vermont State Police Lt. John Flannigan, who delivered the report to the House Judiciary Committee on Friday, the results reflect an effort to increase the awareness of Vermont law enforcement officers who are trained to recognize drug impairment.
“There’s a lot more being detected now than probably would not have been in 2005,” Flannigan said after the testimony.
Last year, the Legislature passed new regulations cracking down on driving while impaired by drugs, not just alcohol.
The increase in toxicology results correlates with the growth of the DRE program. In 2005, there were just five officers trained in recognizing drug impairment, compared to 38 today.
In some cases officers went out of state for training — Flannigan, one of the first Vermont DREs, traveled to California. There have also been some training sessions in roadside impairment recognition held in Vermont.
The report, which tallies data from more than 1,000 cases over the past decade, shows that depressants are the most common type of drugs detected in toxicology reports.
Central nervous system depressants cover a wide range of drugs, but frequently are prescription medications, such as sleep aids. Those drugs were found in more than a third of cases.
“Just because you’re legally prescribed a drug, doesn’t mean you cannot be proven (to be) under the influence of that drug,” Flannigan told the committee.
Flannigan said that although the drugs are not always illegal drugs, many people using depressants were not prescribed them.
According to the results, the second most common drug involved is marijuana, with about a quarter of all cases, followed by narcotics, at 20 percent.
Flannigan said that results frequently show evidence that a person is using more than one drug at a time.
Part of the challenge, Flannigan told lawmakers, is in teaching people to identify the signs of impairment under drugs as opposed to alcohol. In addition to training more officers to recognize evidence of impairment, DREs are reaching out to schools.
“Most people can relate with seeing someone impaired by alcohol,” Flannigan told lawmakers. “A drug like marijuana may not produce the same physical impairment.”
