Driving under the influence of drugs criminal offence as of today

Driving under the influence of drugs has become a criminal offence in Georgia starting today.

Those found under the influence of drugs, psychotropic and new psychoactive drugs or substances will be fined or sent to prison for up to one year, and their licenses will be revoked for three years.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs says that patrol police have already been re-trained and equipped with modern, German-made drug tests, which work with the use of saliva.

If a patrol police officer suspects that an individual might be under the influence of drugs, he/she has the right to check the driver.

If the test comes back positive for drug consumption, the individual will be taken for additional tests.

Making driving under the influence of drugs punishable by the criminal code aims to protect the lives of people and make traffic more secure,” the ministry says.

The ministry reports that driving under the influence of drugs is a criminal offence in France, Germany, Netherlands, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Czech, Croatia, Estonia, Romania, Finland and Sweden.

Giorgi Gakharia stated that the law is more tough on driving under the influence of drugs rather than of alcohol because “they are absolutely different offences”.

Gakharia stated that the only thing which might be done in the situation is to make punishment tougher for driving under the influence of alcohol.

Driving under the influence of alcohol is an administrative offence in Georgia, banning driving for offenders for six months.

A repeat driving exam after six months or a payment of 1,000 GEL  are mandatory to be allowed to drive again.