Press release - Candor Trust

The Pot Toll on Easter Roads

The Sunday News yesterday exposed the unique impotence of NZ Police under current traffic safety laws relating to intoxicated drivers, and it's worthy of a chapter in 'Alice in Wonderland,' says Candor Spokeswoman Rachael Ford.

'Our members young and old are calling in aghast at the news of less than one drug driving conviction monthly. Your best chance at drug testing by the Police is after death, when it's too late to be reminded about safety.'

192 Police trained in drug recognition were between them only able to convince a grand total of 81 suspects to undergo impairment tests (year to June 2006) according to the report.

About a quarter of the driving menaces who consented to tests pulled the plug halfway through, possibly once they realised they were failing. And of a meagre 23 prosecutions (versus 29,000 for drink driving) just 11 produced convictions.

'We have gone from just 96 injury accidents with 4 deaths in the year 2001 to 114 injury crashes and 5 fatal ones last Easter. This year is not looking good. It's quite probable that seasonal cannabis over-indulgence is to blame for bad crashes being steadily on the upswing on consecutive Easter breaks lately.'

'Over half of those killed or crippled in the Easter toll are sure to have suffered just because some idiot sucked on a marijuana joint. As while it's Palm Sunday for some, others certainly see Easter as one big Hemp Holiday'.

They've long had the cannabis harvest in March circled on their 'Country Calendar' and these people are active on road in daylight hours.

This glut of pot combined with Police's policy of opportunistic prosecutions of drug drivers which will proceed only when they're willing to self-incriminate translates into an unneeded rush on white crosses.

Potsmoking bushman Mark Aranga whose packed car became airborne after he hit a traffic island in a misjudged overtake of a slow vehicle perfectly exemplifies how pot dangerously distorts distance judgement.

In March Judge Weir of Rotorua noted that the fact several drunks chose Mark as their designated driver again underscores the urgent need for driver drug tests.

'We wholeheartedly agree, since drug driving is now a greater problem than drink driving - again and again it is the recurring theme in Coronial inquests.'

Police have been analysing dead drivers and found 45% have recently consumed cannabis, which suggests one person dies daily from cannabis.

This past week a young woman survived flying off a highway straight in the middle of the day. The pungent smell of pot may well have permeated her wreckage. But as a crash survivor the woman was able to evade drug testing as it, and therefore DUI drug convictions are currently voluntary affairs. With growers now busy bundling crops into millions of kitchen foil tinny wrappers, each costing little more than 2 packets of ciggys, NZ's cannabis connoisseurs are often 'up up and away', cruising far afield frantic to restock.

The West Coast of the South Island, the East Coast of the North Island and the Far North make popular holiday destinations with many stressed out 'Townies', oft times seeking familiar aromas. International tourists may be cannabis curious.

But the risk of cannabis on road is high and comes from the smokers greater likelihood to take risks 'just for fun.' Also from the fact users report a 50% higher chance of breaking speed limits (Canadian user prior year survey).

Sedation and poor attention can also cause problems, while judgment of moves can be poor due to altered time sense and stoner's far sightedness. Pot users suffer handicaps in hazard response too.

As with alcohol it may be difficult for people to judge their impairment level, and stepped up Police checkpoints remain an ineffective deterrant for DUI in the absence of any major program for drug testing. The 20-30 year old drivers who have the highest rate of death from drink driving which stands at 30% of this age group deceasing in crashes (per Transport Ministry figures) are pinned in Ashfields study as the group that is slippery.

This group was found to also be one deliberately and frequently substituting excess drinking with pot use to evade DUI charges. Often with fatal results.

In New Zealand there is clear evidence in deceased drivers and from those going before the Courts, like Aranga, that this trend to doping not drinking if driving is neutralising prior positive impacts of alcohol checkpoints.

'The reason Generation J sets out to con checkpoint cops and themselves out of life sometimes is that they genuinely don't understand the high risk factor. We're 20 years behind other Countries in cannabis crash education'.

This, despite that NZers are arguably the global leaders in it's breeding and lead in per capita convictions for use.

'Due to this cultural value many Kiwis attach to dope, weaving or erratic vehicles are less likely to signal a drunkard and more likely to be guided by the hand of a druggy driver nowadays,' says Rachael Ford of Candor.

While the percentage of all drivers to die in crashes who were drunk has dropped from 47% in 1987 to just 25% today, figures from the ESR show that recent impairing cannabis use by deceased drivers correspondingly rose from 22% in the 1996 up to 45% lately.

While most areas do have Cops trained in drug impairment recognition who can confiscate keys if need be and order medical exams, they are struggling to bring prosecutions and get the job done under bad legislation when Drs even fail to show in Court.

'This double standard re dope and booze has been allowed to continue too long. That cannabis has replaced alcohol as the dead drivers drug of choice down under should be a good clue new laws can't be drafted fast enough.

An Overseas survey found most people see both drink and drug driving by youth as equal threats that should get greater priority than anything else -including speeding.

5 Point Driver Guide to Escaping NZ's 'Pot-toll'.

DOPER- Delay going, Open fridge, Phone a ride, Exercise; walk with care, Rest up

Tolerance offers no protection and crash risk increases with the THC dose taken. 300mcg/kg of THC which is an average joint or a smaller measure of the stronger stuff like skunk weed or hashish oil is as impairing as being at 0.5 blood alcohol.

The first hour after smoking is extra high risk as the brain is getting lots of THC delivered, the next 90 minutes remains risky. Three hours is a good approximate time frame to avoid driving though some may need longer.

Adding any depressant drug to cannabis takes risk level sky high. Alcohol at the legal limit of 0.8 was shown in the IMMORTAL study (2006) of thousands of crashes in Europe to increase crash risk to an astounding 179x the normal. Any alcohol atop THC can cause speeding and recklessness (Papafotiau 2006).

Fatigue from over work, sleep deprivation or even an alcohol hangover worsens the usual effects of cannabis on driving - sleep tiredness off for 20 minutes, and don't go but relax longer if you feel at all high and not fresh soon after waking.

ENDS

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