PHOENIX (AZFamily) — One Arizona man just won an appeal to keep his driver’s license after he tested positive for THC in his system while behind the wheel.

Though recreational marijuana became legal in Arizona 4 years ago, there still are policies on the books that aren’t in line with that.

When this man was pulled over, he refused to do a field sobriety test, which is his right. Instead, he was arrested on suspicion of DUI because of reckless driving.

When he got to jail, he was blood tested, and it showed no signs of alcohol in his system. However, officers did find evidence of THC, making things more complicated now that marijuana is legal in Arizona.

“There’s a conflict between statutes in Arizona,” said criminal defense attorney John Trebon, who worked on this case. “[It now] just means you can’t lose your license automatically simply because you used marijuana as a legal substance.”

Now that Marijuana is legal in 24 states, including Arizona, Trebon says state laws differ as to how much you can have in your system when driving and how police test for impairment.

For example, “[some states] have 8 nanograms per deciliter of THC in your blood. Some have 5. Various states have different standards. Arizona doesn’t have an automatic standard. So in each case that goes to trial in Arizona, the state has to show actual impairment,” Trebon said.

The state relies on field sobriety tests because Arizona does not have an automatic standard. While the blood test showed evidence that THC was present, it can stay in the blood for up to 12 hours. So, officers could not prove he was impaired at the time he was driving.

Though criminal charges were dropped, he still lost his license because of an ADOT statute.

“When you get arrested for DUI there are actually two cases that start. The criminal case and the civil administrative proceeding. So ADOT or the state actually gets two bites of the apple,” Trebon said.

Right now, there’s a rule that if you have any amount of an illegal substance in your system while driving, ADOT automatically suspends your license. That includes THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, even though weed is legal in the state.

“The statute has never been updated. But, the courts have done an admirable job of reconciling the conflict of the statutes. Even though the legislature hasn’t updated anything.” Trebon said.

This case now sets a precedent for future THC DUI cases. That can change if state lawmakers pass a bill with an automatic THC limit.

The driver never actually got his license suspended because he immediately appealed his case. However, based on the driving officers pulled him over for, he was still charged with reckless driving, which is a lesser crime.

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