St. Louis DUI Defense Lawyer

A generation ago, law enforcement did not generally have the ability to detect drugs other than alcohol in a driver's system. Those days are gone.

Blood tests, breath tests, urine tests, and even saliva tests are used by specialists to detect legal and illegal drugs in the system of a driver suspected of DUID, driving under the influence of drugs. In Missouri, having drugs in your system is only a violation of the law if it affects your driving.

And yes, an over-the-counter cold medication could be considered to affect your driving and lead to your arrest and conviction.

How does an officer suspect a driver is under the influence of a drug? Aside from erratic driving, pupil size, perspiration, pulse, injection marks and similar features can lead an officer to suspect drugs, and if so, he or she is required by law to have further tests done.

Missouri Law

A person is in an "intoxicated condition" when he is under the influence of alcohol, a controlled substance, or drug, or any combination thereof.

Any person who operates a motor vehicle upon the public highways of Missouri shall be deemed to have given consent to chemical tests of the person's breath, blood, saliva or urine for the purpose of determining the alcohol or drug content of the person's blood.

Missouri Driving Under the Influence Drugs Attorney

You may refuse the tests, but your license will then be suspended. You can also still be prosecuted without these test results, on the basis of a trooper's camera, testimony and other evidence.

Missouri driving under the influence of drugs lawyer Travis Noble will not take the state's tests as conclusive. You have the right under law to have independent tests run. We strive to establish that even if there was a trace of some substance in your system, it was not enough to affect your driving.

For DUI defense contact attorney Travis Noble Jr. He was a police officer from 1985 to 1990 and a narcotics agent from 1990 until 1995. E-mail our law firm or call a St. Louis DUI defense attorney at 314-450-7849 or 866-794-0947.