LD 1815

132nd MAINE LEGISLATURE
  FIRST SPECIAL SESSION-2025
Legislative Document  No. 1815
S.P. 703  In Senate, April 29, 2025
  An Act to Require a Blood Test for Drugs for Drivers Involved in a
  Motor Vehicle Accident That Results in Serious Bodily Injury or
  Death
    Reference to the Committee on Criminal Justice and Public Safety suggested and ordered
printed.
  DAREK M. GRANT
  Secretary of the Senate
Presented by Senator CYRWAY of Kennebec.
Cosponsored by Representative DILL of Old Town and
Senators: BAILEY of York, HARRINGTON of York, Representatives: FLYNN of Albion,
GRAHAM of North Yarmouth, PAUL of Winterport, PERKINS of Dover-Foxcroft,
SHAGOURY of Hallowell, THORNE of Carmel.
  Printed on recycled paper
1 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
2     Sec. 1. 29-A MRSA §2401, sub-§12-A is enacted to read:
3     12-A.     THC level.      "THC level" means the amount, in nanograms, of
4 delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol per milliliter of blood.
5     Sec. 2. 29-A MRSA §2522-A is enacted to read:
6 §2522-A. Accidents; mandatory testing
7      1. Mandatory submission to test. If there is probable cause to believe that death or
8 serious bodily injury, as defined in Title 17-A, section 2, subsection 23, has occurred or
9 will occur as a result of a motor vehicle accident and that the operator of a motor vehicle
10 involved in the accident is under the influence of drugs, the operator shall submit to a blood
11 test pursuant to section 2524 to determine the operator's THC level or the presence of
12 another drug or drug metabolite.
13      2. Administration of test. The investigating law enforcement officer shall cause a
14 blood test to be administered to the operator of the motor vehicle as soon as practicable
15 following the accident under subsection 1. The operator shall submit to and complete the
16 test administered. Testing must be conducted in accordance with section 2521.
17      3. Admissibility of test results. The result of a test under this section is admissible at
18 trial if the court, after reviewing all the evidence, whether gathered prior to, during or after
19 the test, is satisfied that probable cause exists, independent of the test result, to believe that
20 the operator was under the influence of drugs at the time of the accident.
21     4. Suspension. The Secretary of State shall suspend for a period of one year the license
22 of a person who fails to submit to a test under this section.
23      5. Scope of hearing. The scope of any hearing the Secretary of State holds pursuant
24 to section 2483 must include whether there was probable cause to believe that the person
25 was the operator of a motor vehicle involved in a motor vehicle accident in which a death
26 or serious bodily injury, as defined in Title 17-A, section 2, subsection 23, had occurred or
27 would occur and whether the person failed to submit to and complete the test required under
28 this section. If the person shows, after hearing, that the person was not under the influence
29 of drugs or that the person did not negligently cause the accident, the suspension must be
30 immediately removed.
31SUMMARY
32     This bill does the following.
33     1. It requires an operator of a motor vehicle to submit to a blood test for drugs when
34 the operator is involved in an accident where there is probable cause to believe that death
35 or serious bodily injury has occurred or will occur as a result of the accident.
36     2. It allows the blood test to be admissible at trial if the court reviews all available
37 evidence, with the exception of the blood test, and the court determines that probable cause
38 exists to believe that the operator was under the influence of THC at the time of the
39 accident.
40     3. It requires that the Secretary of State suspend an operator's license for one year if the
41 operator fails to submit to a blood test that is required under this bill. However, the bill
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1 requires that the suspension be removed if the person can show that the person was not
43
2 under the influence of THC or that the person did not negligently cause the accident.
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