Blood Samples Can Also Be Checked for Drugs

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — The Minnesota Court of Appeals says a search warrant that allows police to test the blood alcohol content of a suspected drunken driver also allows them to check for drugs.

The three-judge panel ruled that search warrants aren't necessary for additional testing of the blood once it's been drawn. The ruling Monday reverses a decision from an Anoka County judge who threw out test results showing a motorist, Debra Lee Fawcett, had marijuana and prescription drugs in her system following a 2014 crash in Blaine. No alcohol was found.

Prosecutors argued that once a person's blood is taken, they should no longer expect privacy in any test results from that sample. The Star Tribune  reports the appeals court agreed with prosecutors, saying that additional testing for drugs in a DWI case is not unreasonable.