Updated 01.24 | Published 01.04
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full screen A 19-year-old driver who was under the influence of nitrous oxide drove off and crashed the car. Now he is sentenced for serious drunken driving. Stock photo from another accident scene. Photo: Johan Nilsson/TT
During the drive towards Malmö, the 19-year-old driver and his passenger inhaled nitrous oxide. It ended up that he pulled over and crashed the car at high speed. Now he is sentenced for aggravated drunken driving, which is unique according to the Motormen’s Helnykterhetsförbund (MHF).
– In the few verdicts that exist, the prosecution has been rejected or it has been seen as drunken driving beyond the normal range, says MHF CEO Tomas Jonsson to Sydsvenskan.
According to the law, you can be convicted of drunk driving if you drive under the influence of alcohol or “other substance”. The main reason why few of those who drove after inhaling nitrous oxide are convicted of drunk driving is that the police have no instrument to measure such influence. In this case, the driver himself said that the consumption of nitrous oxide affected the driving, states the judge in the case.
The 19-year-old is sentenced to probation and 40 hours of community service. No one was seriously injured in the accident.