Prosecuting Drugged Drivers Course being held at Adventures on the Gorge

FAYETTEVILLE, WV (WOAY) – Adventures on the Gorge is host to the West Virginia Prosecuting Attorneys Institute for its fourth annual Prosecuting a Drugged Driver Course that gives officers and prosecutors more training in handling those under the influence of drugs behind the wheel.

“This is a course bringing law enforcement and prosecutors together to work with drugged driving cases and to work through using drug recognition expert officers,” says Nicole Cofer, West Virginia’s Traffic and Safety Resource Prosecutor.

The training is set to last all week and includes a classroom portion as well as law enforcement and prosecutors teaming up to perform various tasks that handle drugged driving cases on the road and in the courtroom.

“We will do mock trials where they can work through establishing with the area officer as an expert, and using both the Advanced Roadside and Impaired Driving Program and Drug Recognition Expert Officers in their DUI cases,” she says.

After seeing this training done successfully in other places, and being among the growing drug epidemic ravaging Southern West Virginia, the institute felt it only necessary to bring this training here to help mitigate the effects of impaired drivers on our roadways.

“We have drugged drivers on our roadways day in and day out, and teaching our officers how to better detect them and teaching our prosecutors how to work with our officers to present the best case is the best way to attack this problem,” Cofer says.

Anyone can potentially be victims of a drugged driving accident, it’s only not victimless because of officers who step in before those impaired drivers have an opportunity to crash and hurt themselves or others. For more information you can visit pai.wv.gov.

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