Navigating Cannabis and DUI Laws

Navigating cannabis DUI and laws in Canada and the US can be quite difficult. Luckily, there are some useful resources to refer to.

The laws surrounding driving highs tend to vary widely. In Canada and the United States, it really depends on which province or state you live in. Luckily, the United States has a nice app to help you navigate DUI laws across the states. Developed by the National Alliance to Stop Impaired Driving, the app basically summarizes the DUI laws and penalties for each state. So if you are planning to travel between states, referencing this app can save you a lot of trouble if you are planning to light up.

There are some notable differences between states’ enforcement of DUI laws for drunk driving. Some states — like Montana and Washington — have specific laws that specifically state how much THC you can have in your body. This number is typically 5 nanograms in your body; but again, it’s always best to check. Meanwhile, other states — like California — don’t have a specific law on DUIs related to cannabis. In most cases, this means that cannabis falls under drug driving laws, which is usually prohibited. Such is the case in California, where “it is illegal for a person under the influence of drugs to drive a vehicle.”

The Canadian DUI situation

States gave their citizens a nice app, but what about Canada? Unfortunately we don’t have a corresponding app – which sucks. However, since Canada has far fewer sub-national regions, this is not such a big problem. Much of this information can be found online, but I would like to point out one key difference between the US and Canada. Because cannabis is federally legal in Canada, we actually have national laws for cannabis-related DUIs. In particular, if you’re caught with 2 to 5 nanograms of THC, that’s a minor offense. And if you have more than 5 nanograms, then it’s a serious offense. Each province and territory still dictates different specifics about driving while high. So it’s still best to check these laws if you plan to visit different parts of Canada.

Ultimately, many of these differences stem from how both countries divide federal and subnational powers. We’re both big countries with a lot of regional differences, so it’s normal to have these region-specific laws. It creates a lot of anger about how places regulate cannabis differently, but we just need to educate ourselves about those differences.

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