From
Cody Enterprise:
It’s been more than a year since Cody police officers underwent training in identifying the wide variety of impairing substances drivers use before taking the wheel, and police say it’s making a difference.
“There’s more of an awareness,” Sgt. Jason Stafford said. “It’s made our street officers more aware of what else is out there.”
Traditionally, DWUIs meant alcohol impairment, but increasingly police see drivers using everything from illegal drugs to prescription pills to household chemicals.
“Many people think DWUI is alcohol, but it’s any substance that impairs you,” Sgt. Stafford said.
For the third time in less than two years, a young driver apparently huffing “Dust-Off” cleaner caused major damage two weeks ago. Last month, a Cody woman was sent to prison after she took painkillers and caused a head-on collision, seriously injuring the other driver.
Stafford was among four officers - one for each shift plus one - who last year attended Drug Recognition Expert (DRE) training in Laramie and Phoenix.
They practiced evaluation on volunteers in a holding cell and saw “many scary things,” such as the effects of using methamphetamine and heroine, Stafford said.
They learned to identify signs of impairment in drivers with a low blood alcohol content.
The
DRE program is new to Wyoming but common in California, where it originated.
While it’s legal to buy Dust-Off, state law prohibits inhaling it, and using it and driving counts as a DWUI.
“If there’s two or three cans of Dust-Off or five bottles of cough syrup, that’s an indicator,” Stafford said.
Police now look for pill bottles, too, things they might have missed if they focused only on empty beer cans.