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Boston Marijuana DUI Concerns Heighten

Posted on | March 29, 2014 | Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone

Following the 2012 referendum that legalized medicinal marijuana in Massachusetts, the state is still preparing guidelines for yet-to-be-opened marijuana dispensaries. cannabissatvia

However in the meantime, a new Boston Globe report indicates that doctors - from psychiatrists to gynecologists to pain specialists - have opened offices throughout the state for the primary purpose of evaluating patients for the approved use of marijuana.

Our Boston accident lawyers recognize that this is contrast to what many assumed would happen, which was that people would simply consult with their regular doctor to determine whether they might benefit from the drug. Instead, entire niche offices are apparently devoted to the cause - which raises our concern that the drug might be heavily abused.

How dangerous is driving under the influence of marijuana?

Concerns over drug-impaired drivers are not unfounded. Consider a recent report conducted by the Center for Injury and Epidemiology and Prevention at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health. Researchers there found that fatal crashes involving drivers with marijuana in their systems had tripled over the course of a decade.

Whereas 4 percent of drivers killed in motor vehicle accidents in 1999 tested positive for marijuana, by 2010, that figure had ballooned to 12 percent. That's an increase of 300 percent.

Of course, it's worth noting that because marijuana stays in one's system for a week or more after consumption, presence of the drug only indicated use - not necessarily intoxication or impairment.

But this is precisely the problem when it comes to enforcement of laws regarding impaired driving and marijuana. With alcohol consumption, the presence of alcohol in one's blood stream in certain amounts is a reliable indicator of intoxication because of how quickly alcohol is processed by the body. But because marijuana lingers longer in the body, urine or even blood tests aren't necessarily accurate indicators of intoxication. That means that police more often have to rely on subjective cues, such as red eyes, apparent cognitive deficiencies and even the suspect's own confession.

Marijuana impairment difficult to prove

Because marijuana DUI is tougher to prove, users may feel emboldened. Worse, some consider it a safe alternative to alcohol when driving. However, marijuana impairment affects the brain in much the same way alcohol does. A person who is high suffers from reduced reaction times and impaired judgment - which can be a deadly combination for motor vehicle operators.

Colorado, one of just two states so far to approve marijuana for purposes of recreation, has therefore enacted one of the toughest marijuana DUI laws on the books. Anyone who is caught with 0.05 nanograms or more of the drug in their system can be arrested for DUI.

The state recently invested $1 million in advertisements to remind people that driving stoned is a crime.

Washington state, which has also legalized marijuana for recreation, is considering a similar measure.

Here in Massachusetts, doctors have already certified hundreds of patients to grow or purchase the drug. Also, a company out of California that produces the drug now has a branch in Framingham, and administrators there have said that it has 1,000 approved patients so far.

Whether this kind of system will thrive remains to be seen. So far, the Massachusetts Medical Society has voiced grave concern over doctors offices that are open for the sole purpose of providing access to one particular drug. This creates a clear conflict of interest for doctors, especially in cases where the drug may not even be in the best interest of the patient.

Boston accident victims may contact the Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone at 1-800-WIN-WIN-1. 

 

Boston Pile-Up Collisions a Risk in Winter Weather

Posted on | February 26, 2014 | Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone

Recently in Worcester, some 65 vehicles skidded and slid into each other on a frozen stretch of I-290. A mangled mess of jack-knifed tractor-trailers, smashed passenger cars and shattered glass cluttered the freeway for hours as officials rushed some 35 seriously injured people to the hospital.

A Massachusetts state trooper was later quoted as saying, "The road was a sheet of ice."

Amazingly, no one was killed.

Boston car accident lawyers at the Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone are aware of numerous other similar incidents of mass casualty collisions across the country this winter season, as record snow storms and freezing temperatures have swept across New England, the Midwest and even the South.

USA Today recently reported that since Dec. 1, 2013, there has been at least one multiple-vehicle pileup somewhere in the country every single day. The article defines "multiple-vehicle" as 10 or more.

Last year, there were 107 chain-reaction crashes on U.S. roads, or an average of about two each week. There have been about half that already reported just in the last 2.5 months.

Drivers can't control the weather, of course, and of the pile-ups that occurred last year, analysts say more than 60 percent were brought on by bad weather. Still, authorities report the majority of these situations could be avoided if motorists weren't traveling too fast for the conditions.

Slow Down if the Road Conditions Are Bad

Too many drivers take posted speed limits literally at all times. But that's only the speed one should travel if the conditions are optimal - during daylight, when the air is clear of fog and dust and snow and the roads are dry. In the midst of a major winter storm, drivers need to appropriately tailor their speed.

The fact is, even if it doesn't seem all that bad when you head out, motorists must anticipate the worst. In many of these cases, it's later reported that drivers are suddenly blinded by unexpected snow squalls or thrown out of control by sheets of black ice.

Beyond slowing down, the AAA offers this: Assume that the road ahead, just beyond where you can see, is blocked. Then tailor your driving accordingly.

Video Shows How Quickly Accidents Can Happen

Recently, video footage from a traffic camera showed how a pile-up unfolded, starting with three heavy lanes of traffic crawling through a snowstorm. Then, several fast-moving vehicles plow through traffic, skid, collide and block the road. Other vehicles don't have time to stop. Within seconds, more than 70 vehicles are piled-up and dozens of people are seriously injured.

The average economic cost for a critically injured accident victim is estimated at $1.5 million, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. In a lot of these cases, there may not be many fatalities, but there are almost always serious injuries.

In pursuing compensation for these injuries, victims often find the process difficult because it can be tough - absent video footage - to determine exactly who was at-fault or to what degree each party is at-fault (called comparative negligence). In some cases, insurance claims adjusters try to simplify the process by breaking down a massive wreck into several smaller crashes, each with its own liable parties.

With everything that can be at stake in these investigations, it's important that your rights and interests are protected, and that you receive the compensation you deserve.

If you have been injured in a Boston car accident, call 1-800-WIN-WIN-1 for visit www.marksalomone.com to contact a personal injury lawyer at the Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone.