We pick up where we left off last week. So far we have reviewed insomnia and treatment methods including the prescription for Ambien. This week, we begin with an illustrative case of a DWI Prescription Drug case. This is the second installment of a four-part series. Please keep in mind that this post is educational in nature and is not providing legal advice. For specific information about a criminal case you are involved in, contact the Law Office of Kimberly Griffin Tucker for a free consultation. Make sure to check back next week, for part three of the series.
The Trouble with Susannah
Susannah took Ambien and went to sleep. She woke up in the Jack in the Box drive through and began screaming when she heard repeated tapping and then saw a police officer repeatedly tapping her car window. This scenario is commonly also known as an Ambien blackout. A person takes Ambien before bed as prescribed, and goes to sleep. Unknowingly the person wakes up and drives his or her car with no memory of it. In simpler terms, Susannah was sleep-driving.
The police officer interviewed the take out clerk, and she told him that when she returned to the window with the food Susannah ordered, she saw that Susannah had fallen asleep and was resting her head on the steering wheel. The horn was blowing continuously and Susannah was sleeping like a baby.
Once Susannah calmed down, the police officer requested she submit to a breathalyzer test. She complied with his request and blew 0.00% blood alcohol content level. He next requested that Susannah take part in field sobriety testing. Outside of her balance issue and bloodshot eyes, she passed the tests without incident. There was no accident. No one has been hurt. But the police officer can still not explain her erratic behavior. To rule out drugs, the police officer needs a blood test and arrests Susannah for DWI and DWI Prescription drugs based on his observations, the witness’s statement, and Susannah’s very strange behavior.
Ambien’s Response
Unfortunately stories like Susannah’s are not isolated. Ambien, in response to class action lawsuits and serious accidents, including fatalities, changed its labeling and dosing recommendations. Now the warning labels recommend the sleeping pill only be taken when the person has no mental awareness activities scheduled for the next day. A mix with alcohol or other drugs is the riskiest and most dangerous use of Ambien, particularly with the extended release version and its generic counterpart. Ambien is a hypnotic, after all, and makes the user unconscious.
Contact a DWI Prescription Drug Attorney Today
At The Law Office of Kimberly Griffin Tucker, P.C., we represent people in criminal DWI Prescription Drugs proceedings and at the civil administrative ALR hearings, primarily in the city of Plano and the surrounding counties in Texas. If you or someone you know has been arrested for DWI Prescription Drugs, contact us for a detailed case evaluation.