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Ethical Dilemm Is It Ethical For The Defendant Of Driving Under The Influence ( Dui ) While Taking

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Ethical dilemma: Is it ethical for the defendant to be convicted of driving under the influence (DUI) while taking the prescription medication, methadone?
Professional audience for this paper: lawyers related to DUI cases and doctors who are sued for prescribing methadone According to the recent analysis of Milliman Inc., 16% of car accidents involved at least one prescription drug, and conjointly certain prescription drugs have drawn related professional’s attention because of their side effects, such as drowsiness, dizziness, and blurred vision. In particular, as one of the most popular opioids that can lead someone into an impaired state, methadone has frequently been raised as a controversial issue regarding DUI cases. For example, in …show more content…

The most essential reason of methadone being such a controversy is that methadone has potential side effects, such as “drowsiness, dizziness, or blurred vision”, and thus can put someone under the danger of an automobile accident. It is true that the defendant may be convicted of DUI by methadone due to his inconsistent driving, but the conviction depends on a two-part test by the prosecution. First, the blood test conducted at a state-approved and certified lab must show “appropriate threshold levels of the drug in the defendant’s system” (Goodnough 1). Secondly, the police and the prosecution must prove that the driver who tests positive for the medication was impaired to “the point that he or she was incapable of safe driving” (Goodnough 1). However, both of these tests are subjective measurements of one’s level of impairment, and therefore, cannot avoid having some uncertainties.
During the blood test, for example, the presence of clots in the blood sample can artificially increase the drug concentration on the report since blood is a heterogeneous mixture, which often forms clots. The possibility of blood clotting cannot be ignored because it occurs very frequently for many reasons, such as certain

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