If any person gets behind the wheel while intoxicated and crashes, causing injury to others, that individual will almost certainly be accused of criminal charges. Generally, this has included drivers that are under the influence of alcohol, as well as drugs, including marijuana. However, experienced Michigan criminal defense lawyers have seen this fine line become quite blurred over recent years, particularly with the implementation of statewide medical marijuana laws. The changes in policy could affect charges against people accused with operating while intoxicated, much like the recent case of a Michigan man who is facing vehicular manslaughter after crashing his vehicle after using marijuana, resulting in the death of a passenger.

On February 11th, Timothy Conant, 49, was driving on 20 mile road in Spencer Township when he struck a patch of ice, lost control of his vehicle and crashed into a tree. Unfortunately, the accident resulted in the death of Conant’s friend and passenger in the vehicle, Richard Wallington. Following the tragic incident, residual traces of THC were found in Conant’s system but he his blood alcohol content did not register as exceeded 0.08. Nonetheless, as a result Conant was arrested for Michigan drunk driving charges, as well as vehicular manslaughter.

However, the Michigan criminal defense attorney for Conant argues that neither of the charges against him fit the crime at hand. The unclear applicability of state marijuana laws, as well as previous decisions made by the state Court of Appeals indicates that Conant has a fighting chance of beating the charges against him. The argument for the defense is that the sheer presence of marijuana in a suspect’s system is not sufficient to guarantee impairment.

In the possibly precedent setting case, Justin Malik accidentally turned in front of an off-duty police officer in October 2008. Unfortunately, the impact of the crash killed the sheriff’s deputy, Christopher Yonkers. Following the incident, Malik’s blood alcohol content registered to 0.01 and he admitted to smoking marijuana prior to the collision. Despite this, neither the officers at the scene nor medical practitioners noted any signs of intoxication or impairment.

However, Barry County Circuit Court Judge James Fisher disregarded the claim that marijuana caused Malik to be impaired at the time of the accident. In his ruling, he stated that the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act directly conflicts with state law regarding the drug as medically useless. “The presence of marijuana may be detected for days, but the impairment lasts only a few hours. (The law) criminalizes driving a motor vehicle days or weeks after consuming marijuana, long after any impairment has vanished,” Fisher explained. Especially considering the significant jail time awarded to anyone convicted of a driving case involving death, Fisher also emphasized that it is the responsibility of the prosecutor to prove impairment beyond a reasonable doubt.

Because this case closely resembles Conant’s, his legal counsel believes defeating the charges against him is possible. At this time, Conant is released on a $5,000 bond, and is scheduled to attend a probable-cause hearing on May 25th.

Being accused of operating while intoxicated can be a scary experience for anyone to go through, even if the person is legally allowed to use marijuana for medical purposes. As seen by the case of Timothy Conant, the consequences can be severe and will almost certainly include jail time. However, it is important to use the case of Justin Malik as an example—sound legal advice and superior legal defense provided by Michigan criminal defense attorneys can not only clear your name, but also help prevent any jail time from being assigned.