PLYMOUTH, NS - A 22-year-old woman from New Glasgow was arrested for drug-impaired driving Oct. 20.
Police were called to Highway 104, near Exit 25 in Plymouth, at 11:15 a.m. after a single-vehicle accident was reported. Witnesses told police the vehicle had been travelling east when it struck the guard rail on the right side of the highway, then crossed three lanes and struck the median.
Cpl. Ron Bryce with the Pictou District RCMP said in a press release Oct. 22 that the investigation resulted in the woman being arrested for impaired driving for a drug.
Bryce said there was no immediate sign that the drug impairment was due to marijuana use. Marijuana became legalized in Canada on Oct. 17.
“I can say prescription drugs were found at the scene,” he said. “She certainly exhibited signs of being impaired by a drug, she didn’t have signs of being impaired by alcohol, and of course, there were prescription drugs found.”
The woman now faces charges of impaired operation of a vehicle by drug and refusal to submit to an evaluation by a drug recognition expert. There is a team of at least three drug recognition experts in Pictou County, Bryce said. A refusal to submit to an evaluation to one of those officers carries a penalty that’s very similar to refusing a breathalyzer.
Officers were on the scene of the crash for about an hour, until the vehicle was towed off the highway.
“It could’ve been very serious,” Bryce said. “There were no serious injuries, but it was one of those situations that was very concerning to see.”
The woman was released from custody later that day and is scheduled to appear in Pictou provincial court on Dec. 19.
The investigation is ongoing.
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