Drugs overtake alcohol in fatality crash involvement

43% of fatal crashes involved drugs vs. 25% involving alcohol.

Drugs have overtaken alcohol in being involved in fatal crashes in 2015.

That, according to a recent study done by the Governors Highway Safety Association, which states that 43 percent of fatal crashes involved drugs.

When it comes to identifying those drugs, there’s no breathalyzer test, so officers need to be trained.

“It’s a rather in-depth course, pretty lengthy training,” La Crosse police chief Jason Melby said. “The officers learn a lot about the different effects of different drugs on the body and learn to identify what’s possibly influencing somebody’s behavior.”

Melby says beyond the normal illicit drugs like marijuana, heroin and meth, driving on prescription medication can always produce a high risk situation, as well.

“People may think they’re fine to go drive after they get a medication but they aren’t familiar the effects of the medication on their body,” he said.

Drunk driving was still responsible for 25 percent of deaths in Wisconsin.

View the entire report here.