420 Penalties for Driving High in Montana

You can get a DUI for driving while stoned in Montana.

Another 4/20 weekend is here and thousands of Montanans will note the day by partaking. Since cannabis was legalized for recreational use in Montana, it seems the infamous day for tokers to light up and celebrate has lost much of its allure. Perhaps more so for older potheads.

Read More: 10 Things You Didn't Know about Montana's Highest Town

Montanans are spending millions on cannabis.

I mean, marijuana use in Montana is not much of a secret club or anything anymore. It's mainstream. Grandmas are eating gummies for pain. Vets are finding relief with cannabis, and countless others from all walks of life simply find it enjoyable for a variety of reasons. Avoiding cops with a trusted circle of stoner friends in somebody's fenced backyard isn't a requirement on 4/20 anymore.

Just cause it's legal, you can't drive high.

Like most states, Montana's DUI laws state "under the influence of any drug." Legal, prescribed, booze, pills, weed, cocaine, magic mushrooms, whatever. If you're under the influence of anything, you could be charged with DUI.

Penalties are the same as driving under the influence of alcohol. NORMAL notes the first-time DUI offender in Montana may face:

• At least 24 hours in jail, no more than 6 months.
• A fine between $300 and $1000.
• Possibly a chemical dependency class.

How do they know how high you are?

Here's where things get interesting. Lawmakers in Montana decided in 2013 that anyone driving with more than 5ng/ml or more THC in blood is considered under the influence. Currently, the only accurate way to verify this is with a blood test. 

A former Cascade County prosecutor and UM Law grad named Marty Judnich shared on his criminal defense page that anyone with no prior DUI convictions should refuse to give a blood test for marijuana if asked to do so by an officer. He explains why HERE.

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