Answer
Yes. Medical and neurological conditions may produce symptoms or affect test performance in ways that can be mistaken for drug impairment. An investigation should consider those alternative explanations and the driver’s individual abilities rather than relying on a uniform set of tests alone.
A suspected DUI drugs case requires separating evidence of impairment from symptoms of other medical conditions. Neurological conditions, for example, may affect how a person appears or performs during an investigation.
Some field sobriety tests measure a person’s ability to divide attention. A person with attention deficit disorder may already have more difficulty with that task than the average person used as a comparison, regardless of whether they consumed any drug.
People differ in their abilities and medical histories. A uniform battery of tests may not account for those differences, making it important to consider whether a medical condition explains the observed performance.