That ruling has since been overturned by the state supreme court.

Ethanol, marijuana, and other drug use in 600 drivers killed in single-vehicle crashes in North Carolina, 1978-1981. [ Journal of Forensic Sciences, Oct., 1984 by A. P. Mason, A. J. McBay ] Blood ethanol concentrations (BECs) were usually high; 85.5% of the drivers whose bloods contained ethanol and 67.8% of all drivers had BECs greater than or equal to 1.0 g/L. Drug concentrations were usually within or were below accepted therapeutic or active ranges. Only a small number of drivers could have been impaired by drugs, and most of them had high BECs. Multiple drug use (discounting ethanol) was comparatively rare. Ethanol was the only drug tested for that appears to have a significantly adverse effect on driving safety. An investigator from Aalborg University and the Institute of Transport Economics in Oslo assessed the risk of road accident associated with drivers’ use of licit and illicit drugs, including amphetamines, analgesics, anti-asthmatics, anti-depressives, anti-histamines, benzodiazepines, cannabis, cocaine, opiates, penicillin and zopiclone (a sleeping pill). His study reviewed data from 66 separate studies evaluating the use of illicit or prescribed drugs on accident risk; the study found that cannabis was associated with minor, but not significantly increased odds of traffic injury (1.06) or fatal accident (1.25). By comparison, opiates (1.44), benzodiazepine tranquillizers (2.30), anti-depressants (1.32), cocaine (2.96), amphetamines (4.46), and the sleeping aid zopiclone (2.60) were all associated with a greater risk of fatal accident than cannabis. Anti-histamines (1.12) and penicillin (1.12) were associated with comparable odds to cannabis.

Always deny that you smoke marijuana, don't let your vehicle smell like weed, and use plenty of your favorite eye drops (Visine, Murine, etc.) for nice clear eyes. Avoid incense! It just freaks out certain cops. Keep your weed, legal or not, out of sight. No "HIGHTIMES" mags in plain sight (personal experience). No 420 stickers, etc. on your ride. The alcohol related indicators, (pencil sweep test for jerky eyes and the balance test), won't work with weed. Personally, I have "0", (zero) balance when straight and can only do roof work or rock hop down the middle of creeks after consuming marijuana. It affects different people differntly. Like with whisky. Some people drink it and enjoy social setting without personality change, other people go stark, raving mad. The people who get "lazy" after smoking weed are generally non-motivated people by their nature. How else do you explain so many people getting into major universities with very strict admittance requirements. And yet so many college students regularly smoke weed. So much so that there are many college towns that decriminalize marijuana (Ann Arbor,MI-Champaign,IL-Columbia,MO all 4-year major universities) because of all the marijuana smokers. Lazy stoners are lazy people. And, go to NEVERGETBUSTED. com. They have a product to spray on weed that keeps it from smelling like weed when you burn it. With the majority of people I know, marijuana heightens your awareness and safety factor. Law enforcement always talks about how many people test positive after accidents, but that is extremely deceptive without testing everyone on the road, accidents or not.

I'm so sick of the morons that run this country. If this was alcohol that had metabolites that stayed in the body for weeks the Government would come to their senses right away cause of the Alcohol lobby and People like John Mccain whose wife heads one of the largest beer distributors in the world and is even trying to sponsor the next olympics. Lets adverstise booze to kids and tell cancer patients to eat oxycontin. I'm sick of health advice about weed from philanders, overweight people,people w/ confilcts of interest and smokers. John Edwards, Governor Christie, Mccain and Obama. Realy appreciate pat kennedy too, former alcoholic and pill addict trying to end medical marijuasna. Yup pills are better. Just ask cindy who raided a donation box for pain killers.

Never admit you're wrong. That's the motto of the AZ court: Marijuana (which, btw, was Harry Anslinger's pejorative, racist spin on cannabis) is evil, therefore, drivers who've used it must be evil, too. BUT, studies have shown that people under the influence of pot drive more cautiously than they would drunk or sober. They are of course paranoid of the police, but also, they feel unhurried and non-aggressive. Ignorant lawyers should not be permitted to let their prejudices ruin other people's lives.