Re:Buried in Infrastructure Bill Is a Mandatory Backdoor Kil...
by pwg on Friday December 03, 2021 @09:19AM
(#29430271)
The problem is the title is not what controls which situations this law will cover. The breadth with which a court of law is willing to interpret "impaired" (unless the statute itself narrowly defines "impaired" somewhere else within its words) will ultimately determine how far reaching the application of this law will be.
And "impaired" is a word that is significantly more far reaching in its meaning than "legally intoxicated":
> : being in an imperfect or weakened state or condition: such as
> a : diminished in function or ability : lacking full functional or structural integrity
> b : unable to function normally or safely (as when operating a motor vehicle) because of intoxication by alcohol or drugs
While part (b) above does note a "because of alcohol or drugs" part (a) of the definition leaves the law open to a wide range of "impairments" that are not "drunk" or "high" such as "had a long day, and am quite tired and a little sleepy". Which would result in an "impairment" of your driving as compared to "got a good nights sleep, feel refreshed just now" when getting behind the wheel.
And "impaired" is a word that is significantly more far reaching in its meaning than "legally intoxicated":
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/impaired
> Definition of impaired
> : being in an imperfect or weakened state or condition: such as
> a : diminished in function or ability : lacking full functional or structural integrity
> b : unable to function normally or safely (as when operating a motor vehicle) because of intoxication by alcohol or drugs
While part (b) above does note a "because of alcohol or drugs" part (a) of the definition leaves the law open to a wide range of "impairments" that are not "drunk" or "high" such as "had a long day, and am quite tired and a little sleepy". Which would result in an "impairment" of your driving as compared to "got a good nights sleep, feel refreshed just now" when getting behind the wheel.