If a bill introduced in the state legislature passes, Michigan will become the first state to have roadside drug testing:

The legislation would authorize police to administer a roadside saliva test for illegal drug use, just as they do breath tests for alcohol, when they stop a driver suspected of being intoxicated.

State Rep. Rick Jones, R-Grand Ledge, a former Eaton County sheriff and sponsor of one of the bills in the package, said the tests are easy to administer, reliable and cost effective. The tests could largely replace costly and time-consuming procedures, often requiring search warrants and hospital-administered blood tests, Jones said.

The test kit under consideration for Michigan can detect drug use in six categories, including marijuana, cocaine and methamphetamine.

The metabolites are in the saliva for days (long after the substance was consumed, whether legally or not):

Detection in saliva tests begins almost immediately upon use of the following substances, and lasts for approximately the following times:

* Alcohol: 6-12 h[13]
* Marijuana and hashish (THC): 12-24 h[13]
* Cocaine (including crack): 1 day[13]
* Opiates: Up to 2-3 days
* Methamphetamine ("Tweak," "crank," "ice") and ecstasy (MDMA,) : Up to 5 to 13 days.
* Benzodiazepines: From time of ingestion up to 2 to 3 days
* Amphetamines 3 days[13]
* Phencyclidine (PCP) 3 days[14]

So, it is disingenuous to say that the tests are comparable to breath tests for alcohol, which determine whether a driver has been drinking recently. "Similar to tests for alcohol that have been given at roadside traffic stops for years" my ass! They are not similar at all.

They will not "replace costly and time-consuming procedures, often requiring search warrants and hospital-administered blood tests." Instead, they will result in lots of litigation. By, for example, the many motorists who take prescription painkillers, but are careful never to drive under the influence of them. Or people who might have smoked pot the previous day but didn't drive.

Driving under the influence means just that. The state has a right to determine whether someone is under the influence, but that is not a blank check to go on a fishing expedition into our bodily fluids.

It may sound paranoid, but you'd almost think the goal is to make invasive drug testing as routine a part of our daily lives as an ID check.

Naturally, this Orwellian bill is bipartisan.

MORE: Just saw this Drudge headline:

COPS IN N CAROLINA DEMAND NAMES OF ALL CITIZENS ON PRESCRIPTION DRUGS...
Database Dangers...

You'd almost think we didn't have the Fourth Amendment. (Much less privacy.)