According to the CDC, about one in 10 Americans aged 12 and over take antidepressant medication. Are you one of them? Do antidepressant medications help control your symptoms and leave you feeling happier and healthier?
Antidepressants have helped many Americans who were struggling with depression, but you should know about a side effect that most people have no awareness of at all:
The risk of getting a DUI while on antidepressant medication.
Did you know that if you take antidepressant medication, you shouldn’t just go about your day as usual? You should pay close attention to any side effects that you experience because they could impair your driving ability.
Not all antidepressants are problematic, but some cause sedation, which can interfere with reflex timing, make you sleepy and drowsy, and decrease your ability to focus – all essential abilities when you’re driving a car.
If a police officer suspects that you could be driving impaired because of drugs – even if you have a totally valid and lawful prescription from your doctor – you could be arrested for DUI.
No set antidepressant limit
One central issue in every medicine DUI case is that the state of California doesn’t limit the amount of antidepressant or any other medication that can be present in the body for people to legally drive. The police officer and then the court are charged with determining whether each person in each case was actually impaired because of the use of antidepressants, other drugs, or alcohol. It’s very possible that while you take antidepressants, your driving wasn’t impaired in the least.
Attaining the ideal outcome in antidepressant DUI cases
But it’s going to take an excellent criminal defense attorney to clearly show that you weren’t impaired while driving, so all DUI against charges should be dropped. Or perhaps you were impaired, but you had no idea that you were, so you shouldn’t receive the maximum sentence if you are convicted.
Attorney Dan Chambers is the best choice for all DUI cases in Southern California, including antidepressant DUI cases. All prospective clients are welcome to schedule a free initial case evaluation with Attorney Chambers now by calling 714-760-4088, emailing dchambers@clfca.com, or by using the chat box below.
In the meantime, know this – your case is not hopeless! Prevent conviction in your DUI case now by contacting the Chambers Law Firm.
