False Positive Roadside Drug Test

Convicted Driver Insurance

xeon72

Member
Before I start, for the sake of argument, you’re just going to have to take what I say at face value. Obviously you don’t know me so it’s hard to weigh up the truth in what I say.

Recently I was pulled over by the police and because I admitted to a small amount of canabis use (several days or weeks prior to this) they did a roadside drug test on me. Thé test returned a negative result for THC but a positive result for cocaine. I haven’t used cocaine in years, litterally years. I don’t like the stuff I do not use it. So I was staggered by the result as were the arresting officers.

Obviously I was then taken to the station and I await the results of the blood test which will be months.

I’ve been racking my brains and I still can’t get my head around it. I’m not on any medication other than an asthma inhaler. I didn’t drink coca tea or something like that. I would know if I was spiked or whatever. Basically I can’t explain the result.

I was wondering if anyone has had a similar experience to this or can shed some light onto what’s happened here??
 
Before I start, for the sake of argument, you’re just going to have to take what I say at face value. Obviously you don’t know me so it’s hard to weigh up the truth in what I say.

Recently I was pulled over by the police and because I admitted to a small amount of canabis use (several days or weeks prior to this) they did a roadside drug test on me. Thé test returned a negative result for THC but a positive result for cocaine. I haven’t used cocaine in years, litterally years. I don’t like the stuff I do not use it. So I was staggered by the result as were the arresting officers.

Obviously I was then taken to the station and I await the results of the blood test which will be months.

I’ve been racking my brains and I still can’t get my head around it. I’m not on any medication other than an asthma inhaler. I didn’t drink coca tea or something like that. I would know if I was spiked or whatever. Basically I can’t explain the result.

I was wondering if anyone has had a similar experience to this or can shed some light onto what’s happened here??
Well you have nothing to worry about if what you are saying is true your bloods will come back clear of cocaine
 
Before I start, for the sake of argument, you’re just going to have to take what I say at face value. Obviously you don’t know me so it’s hard to weigh up the truth in what I say.

Recently I was pulled over by the police and because I admitted to a small amount of canabis use (several days or weeks prior to this) they did a roadside drug test on me. Thé test returned a negative result for THC but a positive result for cocaine. I haven’t used cocaine in years, litterally years. I don’t like the stuff I do not use it. So I was staggered by the result as were the arresting officers.

Obviously I was then taken to the station and I await the results of the blood test which will be months.

I’ve been racking my brains and I still can’t get my head around it. I’m not on any medication other than an asthma inhaler. I didn’t drink coca tea or something like that. I would know if I was spiked or whatever. Basically I can’t explain the result.

I was wondering if anyone has had a similar experience to this or can shed some light onto what’s happened here??
The roadside drug tests are only designed to be around 95% accurate, because they only really need to be accurate enough to justify an arrest. So a false positive is possible. But the blood test is significantly more accurate. If you didn't use cocaine the blood test will come back negative for cocaine. Just be aware that there are in total 16 other drugs that will be tested for in the blood, so if you did use another drug that might have been contaminated with cocaine then that could potentially show up.
 
I don’t know if this is of any value here. But in the military they do a CDT from time to time randomly. Compulsory Drug Testing. They are mostly searching you for recreational drugs. However, they have a very narrow scope. Several times I witnessed guys being found positive for rec drugs and the test was completely flawed. They had maybe been on other medications prescribed to them. But because the test was very limited, if it didn’t understand that it was maybe Codiene or something similar and completely innocuous, it would flag it up as a recreational drug. It would then take a blood test to prove otherwise. So it is possible for tests to be misinterpreted.
 
Sorry to hear this dude. I hope you're bearing up OK.

What could be the case here - and I could be wrong - is that they either know (or more likely they just suspect) you are/were a drug user or could smell it, either on you, or one of your passengers. Or didn't like the look of you for some other reason, and got that impression.

THC has a very long half-life, and I reckon it's that they're looking for. Very often, you'll pass a THC saliva test (can be clear in a day or two) but not a blood test, which depending on use can take up to 28 days (or more for complete Cheech or Chongs). Saying you tested positive for coke was probably bollocks, especially if they smelled anything different from the car. Yes it's still unlikely and dishonest - and not at all - probable cause for stopping you, but they don't care because you can't prove otherwise; and you can get coke in your system very easily from sniffing a bank note (hypothetically in their defence).

I've never been swabbed, but I believe that the law should be changed so you are shown the roadside results. they are your results after all, why can't they? I don't think they have to though, which stinks, because otherwise this process is wide open to abuse. Did they show you?
 
Sorry to hear this dude. I hope you're bearing up OK.

What could be the case here - and I could be wrong - is that they either know (or more likely they just suspect) you are/were a drug user or could smell it, either on you, or one of your passengers. Or didn't like the look of you for some other reason, and got that impression.

THC has a very long half-life, and I reckon it's that they're looking for. Very often, you'll pass a THC saliva test (can be clear in a day or two) but not a blood test, which depending on use can take up to 28 days (or more for complete Cheech or Chongs). Saying you tested positive for coke was probably bollocks, especially if they smelled anything different from the car. Yes it's still unlikely and dishonest - and not at all - probable cause for stopping you, but they don't care because you can't prove otherwise; and you can get coke in your system very easily from sniffing a bank note (hypothetically in their defence).

I've never been swabbed, but I believe that the law should be changed so you are shown the roadside results. they are your results after all, why can't they? I don't think they have to though, which stinks, because otherwise this process is wide open to abuse. Did they show you?
They actually did show me the swab test results and they were as described. Negative for cannabis and positive for cocaine. It’s mental.

I’d smoked 4-5 days before the incident and I don’t smoke very much so there is a slight chance the blood will come back positive for cannabis use but given the margin for error I doubt it.
 
They actually did show me the swab test results and they were as described. Negative for cannabis and positive for cocaine. It’s mental.

I’d smoked 4-5 days before the incident and I don’t smoke very much so there is a slight chance the blood will come back positive for cannabis use but given the margin for error I doubt it.
Had anyone smoked in the car recently, or is there any way either you or the car could smell?
 
Had anyone smoked in the car recently, or is there any way either you or the car could smell?
No and no…. My car smells weird because I often carry petrol tools in it but it definitely doesn’t smell of weed. I never smoke in my car and I never have people smoking in my car.

The officer tested me because I admitted to having used cannabis a week prior to the stop (I know this was a stupid thing to do).
 
No and no…. My car smells weird because I often carry petrol tools in it but it definitely doesn’t smell of weed. I never smoke in my car and I never have people smoking in my car.

The officer tested me because I admitted to having used cannabis a week prior to the stop (I know this was a stupid thing to do).

Ok - that explains why you were swabbed. Had you said nothing, probably no swab.

The coke strand is quite sensitive, you could have been exposed to it I suppose. However you wouldn’t be the first on here to be told they’d falsely tested positive for coke. I’ve read it a few times now. Perhaps it’s in Gaviscon or something, or they assume everyone is on it?

Or another theory - unless you watched his every move, of course - and it wouldn’t surprise me, but a part of me wonders if he didn’t have a ‘coke positive decoy’ in his pocket just to get you to do the blood test. As said above, blood has a good chance of registering THC after a few days, long after your saliva won’t. Are they that cunning? Probably.
 
Are they that cunning? Probably.
No. Why would anyone risk their career, livelihood and excellent pension just to stitch someone up for a drug driving charge?

FWIW when I had my accident last year I was breathalysed and provided a mouth swab for drugs (both negative) and it's par for the course when someone is involved in a driving incident. There doesn't have to be suspicion that someone is driving whilst impaired by drink or drugs in order to conduct a test.
 
So why do so many falsely test positive for coke; and why is it always coke?
I have no idea. Perhaps something else is creating a false reading or the tests are not fit for purpose but whatever it is it isn't coppers trying to stitch people up. Whilst there are some bad apples in the police the overwhelming majority are honest and there would be no reason and nothing to gain (but plenty to lose) by falsifying tests in order to arrest someone.
 
So why do so many falsely test positive for coke; and why is it always coke?
You're dramatically over-thinking this. Look at my previous comment, a 95% accuracy rate means approximately 1/20 false positives or false negatives. It's an indication only, it's not evidential. Every drug wipe costs the force around £20, and while a few forces allocate them freely most only hand out two at a time to trained officers. In addition to that, the blood tests themselves cost hundreds and take months to come back, and the process takes them through several hours of paperwork. It's not practical to carry a fake test around or as useful as you might think.

No medications contain cocaine. It's possible a drug wipe can be triggered by environmental cocaine.

Assuming the poster is giving a true account (and I have no reason to suspect otherwise) this is probably a false positive. The results would then later come back negative and they have nothing to worry about.

I think we should dial it back at bit here. Go for the simple explanations over the conspiracy theories.
 
Dramatically over thinking? Not really. Just curious, which was why the questions; and not just the opinion. Now I know I’m spotting patterns which you’re telling me simply aren’t there, I’ve at least learnt something.

Matters little anyway. It wouldn’t change anything, conspiracy or not.

But at least it does serve to highlight to anyone reading that you can be wrongly suspected of one thing, and in the process be quite unwittingly convicted of another.

Now that’s said and any suspicions I may have had quashed, consider ‘it in’ now top of my speed dial list for a bit.
 
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