Finally, Canada is in the final stages of approving a roadside testing device that will be used across the country to test for THC, the active component in cannabis, once cannabis is legalized this coming October. In July, Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould announced that Canadian law enforcement will using the Dräger DrugTest 5000 in roadside tests this Fall, and it will be listed as the “approved drug screening equipment” for both THC and cocaine.
The Dräger DrugTest 5000, or DDT5000, is advertised as a fast and accurate oral fluids measurement device that can identify impairment from amphetamines, designer amphetamines, opiates, cocaine, metabolites, benzodiazepines, methadone, and cannabinoids. Used in conjunction with other physical and psychological roadside tests, the DDT5000 will lead to subsequent testing if the driver is suspected of driving impaired.
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As Kyla Lee states, it’s “inevitable that we’re going to see constitutional challenges as soon as this device hits the roads. This is something that is a significant departure from what the Supreme Court of Canada has authorized, and what police has been doing thus far.”
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