A pilot project starting this month will provide a clearer picture of impaired driving involving cannabis and other drugs with the goal of giving Minnesota law enforcement a new tool that could help save lives.
The Minnesota Department of Public Safety reports drug recognition evaluators from law enforcement agencies statewide will receive training Friday on an oral fluid roadside testing instrument.
The SoToxa Oral Fluid Mobile Analyzer detects the presence of cannabis or other drugs in a driver. This is one of two instruments being evaluated this year for effectiveness, efficiency and accuracy in detecting drugs.
The second instrument is the Dräger - DrugTest 5000. Law enforcement will train using the Dräger at a later date, according to the state.
The roadside tests will be similar to preliminary breath tests law enforcement use to detect drunk driving. The pilot project is voluntary for drivers and results won’t be admissible in court.
The agency’s goal is to obtain legislative approval in 2025.
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Plus: Drivers on Highway 371 in Hackensack can expect daily lane closures beginning May 5; Hibbing Public Utilities will host a landowner-specific information meeting May 7 on its planned new overhead transmission line; and a shooting contest of Easter bunny Peeps draws new and old friends to the Northland Sports Park each year in Bemidji. -
Larissa Donovan/KAXEThe Peep Shoot is an annual fundraiser for the Bemidji Area Shooters Association and Northland Sports Park. KAXE's Larissa Donovan participated and shares her experience. -
Contributed/MnDOTThe project, beginning May 5, 2025, is expected to be completed in mid-October. -
Contributed/Bemidji State UniversityWhile the federal government reversed the termination of hundreds of student visas, Bemidji State leaders demonstrate commitment to foreign-born students and faculty. -
File photo/KAXEThe Native American-led program of the Northland Foundation also funded projects around educational and cultural programming. The grants aim to build community. -
And: Bemidji State commits to global scholar community amid student visa rhetoric.
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Contributed/Paul Bunyan CommunicationsServices for the cooperative's all-fiber optic network expansion are expected to be available by winter. -
Contributed/Ken Lund via FlickrThe appeals court ordered a reversal, agreeing that evidence shown to a jury and submitted by Beltrami County prosecutors was inadmissible. -
News Director Chelsey Perkins catches up on what's happening in St. Paul with Report for Minnesota student journalists Yvette Higgins, Sam Siedow and Elias Thomas.
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Lorie Shaull/KAXEIn spring, eggs have been collected at Cut Foot Sioux walleye spawning site in Deer River, MN, since the 1920s. Fertilized eggs are transported throughout the state.
