Re: “Let’s fix what’s actually broken in our impaired driving laws” (Nov. 23, Opinion):
As state Rep. Dan Griffey wrote, enforcement of the most important risks on our roads has gotten more durable, not simpler.
The Washington State Patrol toxicology lab has a backlog of over 17,000 circumstances, at the moment taking as much as a 12 months to course of an alcohol check however as much as two years if a number of intoxicants are concerned. This may imply marijuana and even merchandise like “Mud Off” that can be utilized as inhalants.
This 12 months, the Legislature allotted a one-time funding of $3 million to assist tackle the toxicology backlog however even with half of all lethal crashes involving an impaired driver, principally alcohol, we’ve loads of work to do.
The apparently “easy” reply of simply decreasing the alcohol restrict to .05% misses this bigger downside.
Nanci Watson, Seattle
