The Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) and Responsibility.org recently awarded Connecticut, Illinois, Louisiana, Maryland and Nevada grants to enhance their ability to deter and detect alcohol- and drug-impaired impaired drivers
“Alcohol and drug use increased during the pandemic as people looked for ways to cope, and we know that many of these individuals are also getting behind the wheel,” GHSA Executive Director Jonathan Adkins said. “It’s tragic and incredibly frustrating to see impaired driving crashes – which are preventable – kill people every day.”
During the COVID-19 pandemic, alcohol-involved crashes surpassed pre-pandemic levels. Crashes increased 16 percent from 2019 to 2020 and an additional 5 percent from 2020 to 2021, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
Drug- and multiple substance-impaired driving continues to increase, but not all police have the training to recognize drug impairment, and some toxicology labs do not have equipment needed to test for certain drugs.
The grants will fund multiple programs including:
Connecticut and Maryland will create green labs. The labs provide volunteers a controlled dose of cannabis to allow law enforcement officers to train how to perform sobriety tests.
Louisiana will hire a forensic toxicologist to provide expert analysis and court testimony on drug-impaired driving cases.