A doctor gave you a legal prescription for Adderall for your ADHD. But you were later arrested for DUI after taking a dose. Can this really happen?
Yes. You can be charged and convicted for DUI if you take a drug, including Adderall, and it impairs your ability to safely operate a motor vehicle. This is true even if you have a valid or legal prescription for the drug.
Common prescription drugs that lead to DUI charges include:
1. Will you get a DUI while driving on Adderall?
Possibly, yes. Most states say that you are guilty of DUI/DWI if you drive a vehicle while under the influence of drugs.1
“Drugs” includes:
- illegal drugs or controlled substances,
- prescription medications (like Adderall), and
- over-the-counter medicines.
Note that you are considered “under the influence of drugs” if you take a substance and it:
- impairs the normal use of your physical or mental faculties, and
- does so to the extent that you can no longer act in a reasonably safe and cautious manner.2
If a police officer does arrest you on suspicion of driving under the impairment of Adderall, you are typically required to submit to a chemical test of your blood. Most state laws say that you give your “implied consent” to submit to a chemical test (such as a blood test) once you assume the privileges of driving a vehicle.
2. How does Adderall affect your driving?
Adderall use can lead to a DUI because the drug can make you feel fatigued.
Adderall is a combination of the drugs dextroamphetamine and amphetamine. The substance helps keep you focused and attentive. It is often prescribed used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and other attention disorders.3
These types of drugs work by stimulating your central nervous system. That stimulation begins to fade after about six hours and a result is that you feel tired. This fatigue or drowsiness can slow your reaction times and impair your ability to drive safely.4
Common side effects of Adderall include:
- fatigue,
- light-headedness,
- dizziness,
- blurred vision,
- nausea, and
- sweating.
3. What are the penalties?
The specific penalties for driving under the influence of Adderall will depend on:
- the facts of your case, and
- the laws of the state in which you received your DUI conviction.
With that said, DUI charges are usually filed as misdemeanors (as opposed to felonies). A first-time offense is often punishable by:
- jail time,
- fines,
- a driver’s license suspension,
- successful completion of DUI School, and/or
- installation of an ignition interlock device.5
Note that if you refuse a chemical test when arrested for driving with Adderall, the state may suspend your driver’s license. In addition, you will receive steeper DUI penalties if later convicted of driving while intoxicated.
4. Common Defenses
Common defenses in Adderall DUI cases include a lawyer showing that:
- you were not under the influence of Adderall,
- law enforcement made errors in taking or interpreting a blood test,
- police made erroneous conclusions after conducting field sobriety tests, and
- the police made a traffic stop without probable cause.
Additional reading
For more in-depth information, refer to these scholarly articles:
- Drunk versus drugged: How different are the drivers? – Drug and Alcohol Dependence.
- Repeat DUI Offenders Who Have Had a Drug Diagnosis: Are They More Prone to Traffic Crashes and Violations? – Traffic Injury Prevention.
- Driving under the influence of drugs – Wires Forensic Science article on how drugs affect the operation of motor vehicles.
- Drugs and Driving – Traffic Injury Prevention article on the link between taking drugs and impaired driving.
- The use of psychoactive prescription drugs among DUI suspects – Drug and Alcohol Dependence.
Legal References:
- See, for example, Vehicle Code 23152f VC.
- See Black’s Law Dictionary, Sixth Edition – “Intoxication.”
- See Mayo Clinic website, “Dextroamphetamine And Amphetamine (Oral Route).”
- See same.
- See, for example, Nev. Revised Statutes 484C.400.
