Roadside drug testing petition launched on anniversary of New Year's Eve death

Monday, 31 December 2018

A year ago the Dow family suffered unimaginable loss when a driver high on meth drove into their son, killing him. On the first anniversary of his death, they have launched a petition calling for roadside drug testing so that no other family ever n

A Christchurch family who lost their son to a drug driver a year ago are backing a petition to introduce roadside drug testing.

Matthew Dow was killed in Nelson on New Year's Eve in 2017, after his car was hit by another driver who was high on methamphetamine.

That driver, Takaka woman Alicia Fulcher-Poole, was driving erratically on the Appleby Highway between Richmond and Motueka before crossing the centre-line and running into Dow's car. In October she was jailed for three-and-a-half years on charges including driving causing death while under the influence of drugs.

Nelson MP Nick Smith launched the petition on Monday with the Dow family, at the spot where Matthew was killed.

**READ MORE:

Karen and Peter Dow and their son Angus with the ashes of their son Matthew who died a year ago in a fatal crash on the Appleby Highway.

* Life of 'kind and gentle soul' cut short by meth driver

* Takaka mother sent to prison for causing fatal New Year's Eve crash while on meth

* Victim named in New Year's Eve crash near Nelson**

Matthew's parents, Peter and Karen Dow, said the petition was about New Zealand taking drug driving seriously.

'If we can save just one life and one family the heartache we have experienced, this petition will be worth it.

'Our hope as a family, launching Matthew's petition today on the anniversary of his death, is to highlight the number of road deaths attributed to drug drivers.'

Karen Dow said her son had been called a 'road safety nerd', due to his emphasis on keeping people safe in his car.

Matthew had kept a dashboard camera in his car, and often made his younger brother ride in the back seat because it was safer.

Before driving from Christchurch to Nelson on Boxing Day last year, he had made sure to replaced all four tyres on his Suzuki Swift, she said.

'The tragedy that struck our family could have been anyone's – Matthew was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.'

A cross on the Appleby Highway marking where Matthew died.

Smith said Dow's tragic death was one of seven fatalities in the region last year where meth or cannabis were identified as a cause of contributing factor.

Last year there were 79 deaths nationally involving drug drivers, compared to 70 deaths where drink drivers were involved.

Smith said while there had been about 16,000 convictions for drink driving during that time, there had been less than 200 for drug driving.

Former police officer Terry Richards, left, Nelson MP Nick Smith and Karen and Peter Dow.

He said the roadside drug testing would be based on similar models used in Australia, the United Kingdom, and Canada – where police use a random saliva testing programme for road users.

'We know that in in Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, and another eight countries, random roadside drug testing has had an positive impact on reducing road fatalities.

'The government is proposing liberalising acess to drugs, that makes it even more important to give police the tools to deal with drug driving the same way they do with drink driving.'

The Dows started the petition in the hope that no other family will ever go through what they have.

Retired Nelson police Sergeant Terry Richards said the current legislation was currently too restrictive to have any real effect, making it near impossible for police to secure a conviction.

'You have to have good cause to suspect the driver has taken illicit drugs – most of the time we used the drug driving legislation was after crashes.'

Richards said convictions would initially 'soar' if random drug testing was brought in.

'When random breath testing was brought in, drink driving convictions went though the roof until people realised they couldn't do this anymore – and dropped down to the level it is today.

'Police are bound by legislation, until it changes it will never get better than what it is now.'

The petition will close on May 8, 2019, which would have been Matthew Dow's 25th birthday.