• You Are Here: Home > News
  • > Michigan State Police Begin Roadside Drug Testing Pilot
Michigan State Police Begin Roadside Drug Testing Pilot

Michigan State Police has begun a roadside drug testing pilot program in five counties, according to HDT.

State troopers in five Michigan will participate in a year-long pilot program in which police can conduct roadside drug tests on suspected impaired drivers.

The Preliminary Oral Fluid Analysis pilot program was established in 2016 and went into effect Wednesday, Nov. 8, in Berrien, Delta, Kent, St. Clair and Washtenaw counties. According to the Michigan State Police, the five counties were chosen based on several criteria, including the number of impaired driving crashes, impaired drivers arrested and trained Drug Recognition Experts (DREs) in the county.

DREs are police officers who have received training that allows them to identify drivers impaired by drugs. These officers can require a driver to submit to an oral fluid test with a mouth swab at roadside to detect the presence of a controlled substance. The test can determine the presence of Schedule 1-5 controlled substances, much like a breathalyzer detects alcohol. MSP says refusal to submit to the test is a civil infraction.

Share This Story

Archives