Pubdate: Tue, 26 Apr 2016
Source: Shoreline Beacon (CN ON)
Copyright: 2016 Shoreline Beacon
Contact: http://www.shorelinebeacon.com/letters
Website: http://www.shorelinebeacon.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/3650
Author: Frances Learment
Page: 6

TEACHING COPS TO DETECT IMPAIRED DRIVERS

Under the watchful eye of police officers, volunteers were "dosed" 
with controlled amounts of alcohol at a Standardized Field Sobriety 
Test (SFST) Drug Recognition Evaluation (DRE) workshop hosted by 
Saugeen Shores police, April 18-21, at the Port Elgin Plex.

After being trained in the theory of alcohol and drug impairment, the 
officers from Saugeen Shores, Owen Sound, Perth and Wellington 
Counties, Wingham, the OPP, RCMP and the military police, tested 
their competency and proficiency to spot impaired volunteers, 
according to Middlesex detachment OPP Constable Emmett Murchland, who 
ran the workshop with seven other instructors.

"We put [the trainee officers] through the Standardized Field 
Sobriety Test battery - we're testing the officers to determine if 
they can interpret what they're seeing and apply it in the field to 
determine if [drivers] are impaired or not," Const. Murchland said, 
April 19, during a break in the training.

"We also train to look for people who might abuse prescription 
medicines," he said, noting that driving while under the influence of 
drugs has been a criminal offence in Canada since the 1920s. In 2008, 
Parliament amended the Criminal Code to allow police to demand 
roadside evaluations of drivers suspected of being high.

Like an impaired driving investigation, Sgt. Murchland said officers 
must establish probable cause before requiring a roadside test that 
includes walking a straight line, standing on one leg and following 
an officer's finger or pen with their eyes.

If the subject fails, at a detachment, a trained Drug Recognition 
Evaluation officer then conducts additional testing using a 12-step 
process that includes: a breath alcohol test; interview by the 
arresting officer; preliminary examination and first pulse test; eye 
exam; divided attention psychophysical tests; vital signs and second 
pulse test; dark room exam; muscle tone exam; check for injection 
sites and third pulse test; a toxicological exam and then analysis 
and opinions of the evaluator.

If officers believe the person is impaired by a substance they can 
make a demand for either blood, an oral swab for oral fluid or for a 
urine sample that is sent to the Centre of Forensic Science for testing.

Saugeen Shores Police Chief Dan Rivett said five of his officers 
attended the training as a stepping stone to Drug Recognition 
Evaluation (DRE) certification - currently Saugeen Shores has one 
trained DRE officer - his training in Arizona was paid for by the 
Federal government.

"Let's say we were to pull over a car with a person who looked like 
they were impaired... and you really couldn't detect alcohol, or a 
breathalyzer test detected a low level of alcohol, but you knew they 
were impaired by something - then we bring in our DRE officer who 
then can do some testing to determine what type of drugs the person 
was on," Chief Rivett said.

"We're trying to stay ahead of the curve on training for recognition 
of impaired driving," Chief Rivett said, adding they need to be 
prepared if and when when the Federal government legalizes marijuana. 
(On April 20, the Liberal government formally announced its plans to 
legalize and regulate marijuana with legislation ready in a year.)

Rivett adding there's a movement in Ontario to have all police 
recruits receive the training, so police services must pick up the 
slack to ensure all existing officers are trained.

He said the volunteers, seven on April 19, and another group April 
20, were watched carefully during the alcohol dosing and testing, 
were fed and supplied with coffee, and released to a sober driver at 
the end of the testing.

Orillia OPP instructor Sgt. Dave Wallbank, coordinator of the OPP's 
drug evaluation and classification program, said new drivers are the 
target audience for DRE testing as drug-impaired driving is on the 
rise, especially with youths.

"They aren't as experienced on the road so you want to make sure that 
they are driving sober... and because of the sanctions in place in 
Ontario, with zero alcohol allowed in the system for G1 and G2 
drivers, a lot of youths are now looking to drugs, instead of 
alcohol," he said, adding marijuana is the number one drug of choice 
for impaired drivers.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom