Yes. In California, driving under the influence of any substance is illegal if it affects your brain, your nervous system, or your muscles. This includes legal prescription drugs as well as over-the-counter (OTC) medicine.
It does not matter whether you have a medical reason to use the drug or not—you are not supposed to drive on any medication that could impair your ability to drive safely. Our Los Angeles DUI lawyers can defend you against charges of DUI on prescription or over-the-counter drugs.
How Intoxication is Defined
California law considers driving under the influence of any substance illegal if it affects your brain, nervous system, or muscles in a way that makes you a worse driver. This includes both prescription medications and over-the-counter drugs, regardless of whether you have a valid medical reason to use them.
The key factor isn’t the legality of the substance but its effects on your driving ability. Even common medications can lead to a DUI arrest if they impair your judgment, reaction time, or motor skills.
Your valid prescription isn’t a defense against DUI charges. The law focuses on safety and your ability to operate a vehicle, not your need to take medication.
Which Prescription or Over-the-counter Drugs Cause Intoxication?
Driving on medication like Tylenol would not count as a DUI because it doesn’t affect your brain or your control of your vehicle in any meaningful way. Driving on a drug that makes you drowsy, however, would count as DUI. Here are the most common medications we see associated with DUI arrests:
- Decongestants that cause drowsiness or dizziness
- Cough medicine that causes drowsiness
- Antihistamines that slow reaction time and impair motor skills
- Ambien and other sleeping pills
- Xanax and other antidepressants
- Oxycodone, hydrocodone, Vicodin, and other pain pills that cause impairment and dulling of the senses
- Medical cannabis, which can strongly impair the driver and increase the chance of accident
These are just the most common drug types that can cause a DUI on prescription or over-the-counter drugs. Nearly any medicine could be considered a cause for DUI if the dose harms your ability to think, use motor skills, or react.
What Evidence Is Used In Medication-Related DUI Cases?
Law enforcement officers rely on several types of evidence to support medication-related DUI charges. During the traffic stop, they document physical signs of impairment, including coordination, speech patterns, and behavior.
Field sobriety tests can play a role in these cases, though they may be less reliable for medication-related impairment than for alcohol. Officers also look for physical evidence like prescription bottles or over-the-counter medication packages in your vehicle.
Chemical tests can detect the presence of medications in your system, but unlike alcohol, there’s often no clear legal limit for many of these substances. This creates opportunities for your defense team to challenge the prosecution’s evidence.
What are the penalties for DUI involving prescription/OTC medicine?
The law treats DUIs essentially the same, no matter what substance is involved, for DUI charges. If you were driving intoxicated while high on cocaine, you would face additional drug charges on top of the DUI, but you normally won’t get additional drug charges if you have a valid prescription or the drug is sold OTC.
Basic penalties for the most common charges include:
- 1st Offense DUI (if no one was hurt): 3 days to 6 months in jail, heavy fines, license suspended for at least 4 months, 3 months of mandatory classes
- 2nd Offense DUI (if no one was hurt): 4 days to 1 year in jail, heavy fines, license suspended for 2 years, 18-30 months of mandatory classes
- 3rd Offense DUI (if no one was hurt): 6 months to 1 year in jail, heavy fines, license suspended for 3 years, 30 months of mandatory classes
All of the charges above are misdemeanor criminal offenses. However, there are cases where a prescription drug/OTC drug DUI will count as a felony, which involves prison time and other harsh consequences. These situations include:
DUI offenses usually drop off your record after ten years, so one could commit two 1st offense DUIs if they happen far enough apart in time.
How Can You Defend Against Medication-Related DUI Charges?
Your best strategy is to hire a DUI lawyer. We can employ several defense strategies in medication-related DUI cases. One approach involves challenging the officer’s observations and the validity of field sobriety tests, which weren’t designed to detect medication impairment.
Our team can investigate whether proper procedures were followed during your arrest and subsequent testing. We may also question the accuracy of blood tests and their interpretation.
Sometimes, we can demonstrate that other factors, such as fatigue or medical conditions, created the appearance of impairment rather than medication use.
Contact Us if You’ve Been Charged with DUI on Prescription or OTC Drugs
You can get a DUI on prescription or over-the-counter drugs. Don’t let a medication-related DUI charge derail your life. Our experienced legal team will work to protect you from the punishment of a DUI while on prescription or over-the-counter drugs.
Contact us today to schedule a free consultation to discuss your situation and explore your legal options.
