You may need painkillers to cope with chronic pain — but if you drive while under the influence of these drugs, you may find yourself facing criminal charges.
If you’re like many Americans, you may be living with chronic pain. Whether it’s from an illness or injury, pain is an all-too-common symptom for millions of Americans. Taking medication to help you cope with the pain may be necessary — but it can also lead to criminal charges if you drive while under the influence of that drug.
California’s Driving Under the Influence of Drugs (DUID) law applies to all medications and controlled substances that affect your ability to drive — even prescription drugs. If you are taking Vicodin, Percocet or any other narcotic painkiller to help you cope with your pain, you may be arrested for DUID. This can lead to a slew of penalties and a criminal record — which can affect the rest of your life. That’s why it is so important that you know how this medication affects you and your ability to drive before you get behind the wheel of a car. If you have been arrested for a DUI of Drugs, contact a skilled Long Beach DUI lawyer as soon as possible to protect your legal rights and freedom.
What Is DUI of Drugs?
To prove that a person committed a DUI of Drugs, a prosecutor only has to show three things:
- You drove a car, truck or other vehicle;
- You were under the influence of prescription drugs (and/or alcohol) while driving; and
- The drugs impaired your physical or mental abilities to an extent that you could not drive in a way that an ordinarily cautious sober person would drive.
The prosector does not have to prove that the drugs were illegal, that you took too much of it, or that you were abusing the drugs in any way. It’s enough that you drove under the influence of these drugs and that your driving was impaired as a result. Keep in mind that if you were taking the drugs illegally (i.e., without a prescription), you could also be charged with an additional crime for possession of a controlled substance.
Any type of prescription painkiller can lead to a DUID charge. This may include more commonly known drugs such as Vicodin, Oxycontin, Hydrocodone or Percocet. It can also be charged if a person has taken Demerol, Suboxone, Norco, or Dilaudid. If you are taking a prescription medication that impairs your ability to drive — which many painkillers will do — then you could be charged with a DUID.
Defending Against A DUID Charge
A DUID charge carries serious penalties that are similar to those for driving under the influence of alcohol charges. A first-time offense is a misdemeanor, unless certain circumstances exist, such as prior convictions or if you caused harm to someone when you were driving under the influence. The typical penalties include a driver’s license suspension, fines, mandatory DUI school, and possible jail time.
Because the potential consequences of a DUID charge is so high, it’s important to have a seasoned Long Beach DUI lawyer to defend you. A defense to these charges will defend on the facts of the case, but your attorney may be able to present expert witness testimony to show that you were not “under the influence” and that your driving was not impaired. This can be shown by demonstrating that the dose you took was within the therapeutic range to control your pain, or that you had built up a tolerance to the drug so that even a larger dose would not impair your ability to drive. Other possible defenses may include that your chemical blood or urine test was contaminated, or that the police illegally stopped you.
If you’ve been charged with a DUI of Drugs for taking your prescription painkillers, you’ll need a tough, smart Long Beach DUI defense lawyer to help you fight the charges. Contact the Chambers Law Firm today at 714-760-4088 or dchambers@clfca.com for a free consultation to learn more about how we can help you. We have years of experience and will aggressively defend you to get the best possible outcome for your case!
