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On-The-Spot Drug Testing Devices Would Be Available For Officers Under Assembly Bill

SACRAMENTO (CBS13) — A state lawmaker wants police to be able to use new technology that could determine if a driver is under the influence of marijuana.

It was a typical state Capitol press conference, but it got really interesting in that meeting when someone turned up positive for marijuana use.

Assemblyman Tom Lackey from Palmdale is endorsing the use of a new on-the-spot drug test through Assembly Bill 1356.

"It's very clear that the usage of marijuana is becoming more and more common," he said.

If passed, it would authorize officers to give drug tests to people suspected of driving impaired. Fluid samples are collected from a swap. The officer gets results in minutes. It detects more than just marijuana, including amphetamines and cocaine.

But it's not clear what amount of drugs found in a person's system can determine whether they go to jail. Lackey says that part of the bill hasn't been worked out.

The lawmaker's marijuana test results came back negative, but the test on a man we'll call Ben showed he recently used marijuana.

"When I got out of the Army with PTSD if was the best thing for that," Ben said.

Medical marijuana dispensary owner Lanette Davies says she's concerned about people like Ben and sees the new technology as a potential tool for police abuse.

"An impaired driver I would completely support not driving," she said. "However, this is just another way of having zero tolerance for people with THC in their system would be criminalized."

Lackey says funding for the device has not yet been determined.

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