Tested Positive, But Felt Sober...

Q: I was sober but tested positive for drugs — can I still be charged?

A: Yes. And this is exactly why drug driving charges are rising.

I felt completely sober. Can they still convict me?

Yes, because Irish law doesn’t require you to feel impaired. It only requires one thing: a test result that shows you're over the legal drug driving limit.

This is where people get caught out.

"Think of it this way:

Alcohol leaves the body in hours.

Cannabis can linger for days.

Cocaine sometimes even longer.

Just because you feel sober

doesn’t mean you’re under the legal limit"

They feel fine. Alert. In control. Maybe it’s the next morning.

Maybe it's hours later.

But when they’re tested, the result still shows drugs in their system.

Under Irish law, that’s enough.

The State doesn’t have to prove you were weaving across the road or slurring your words. The number alone can convict you.

But I wasn’t high — how can that be fair?

It’s not about fairness. It’s about scientific thresholds. The limit for cannabis (THC) is just 1 nanogram per ml of blood.

That’s tiny.

And it can remain in your system long after the effects have worn off.

Think of it this way: Alcohol leaves the body in hours.

Cannabis can linger for days.

Cocaine sometimes even longer.

Just because you feel sober doesn’t mean you’re under the legal limit.

Are there any defences?

Possibly, but they don’t start with how you felt. They can start with how the test was done:

• Was the roadside oral fluid test triggered lawfully?

• Was the sample taken correctly?

• Was the chain of evidence intact?

• Were you cautioned properly?

• Was the correct legal opinion formed?

Any one of those can be a weak point. But arguing that you "didn't feel stoned" won’t get you very far.

Final Thought: If you're serious, stop guessing

This is the single most common mistake people make with drug driving: they assume if they’re sober enough to drive, they’re under the legal limit.

They’re wrong.

A conviction leads to a criminal record.

A mandatory ban. Insurance nightmares.

Possibly visa problems.

So if you're tested, charged, or just unsure — get advice.

Because once you’re convicted, the ban is automatic.

"This is the single most common mistake

people make with drug driving:

they assume if they’re sober enough to drive,

they’re under the legal limit.

They’re wrong"

After all, it’s the choice between going off the road… or driving home.

And everybody wants to drive home.