Courts in Texas and other parts of the country are beginning to cast serious shade on roadside drug tests. This has a lot to do with the fact that, in case after case, they are beginning to be proven unreliable. Indeed, no court has yet outright banned their use. However, authorities are beginning to look for other methods to prove their drug cases.
Can roadside drug test results be trusted?
Drug charges based on the results of roadside tests have a way of being overturned, at least for the moment. This is good news for citizens who have been unfairly charged or convicted. They can now make a believable argument that their present legal issues came from equipment that has been proven faulty.
Perhaps the main issue with the standard drug testing kit is its essential unreliability. This may be because no standard of regulation governs every test. Officers who use these kits often receive very little training. Sometimes, they are simply handed the kit and told to use them at stops.
As a result, the results obtained through the use of these drug testing kits are often seen as arbitrary. This is because these results are so prone to vary with each situation. Courts that are presented with evidence in such a shoddy manner are often hesitant to hand down convictions.
Can a roadside drug test be challenged?
A person who is charged with drug crimes can sometimes find themselves in a relatively positive position. This will depend on whether or not they can make a good case that the results of their drug test were tainted. If so, their charges may be reduced or dismissed.
Law enforcement authorities across the country are thus widely engaged in calling for serious reviews of these drug testing kits. If their results cannot be verified, they are less than worthless when convicting drug offenders. Measures are now being considered to overhaul these kits to bring them up to speed.