Overland Park DUI with Drugs

DUID Defense in Overland Park & Founded 2010, Trained at the Officer Level

Under K.S.A. 8-1567, no person may operate or attempt to operate a vehicle while under the influence of any drug or combination of drugs to a degree that renders that person incapable of safely driving. A conviction carries the same penalty range as an alcohol DUI: A first offense is a class B misdemeanor with a minimum of 48 hours and up to six months in jail, plus fines between $750 and $1,000. Second offenses rise to a class A misdemeanor, and a third or subsequent offense can become a felony. Beyond the criminal penalties, a DUID arrest can trigger a separate Kansas Department of Revenue administrative license suspension. You have just 14 days from your arrest to request a hearing to contest it. The stakes are high, and the clock starts immediately.

Contact our firm for a free initial consultation. We’ll evaluate your case, identify your defense opportunities, and get to work. Call (888) 387-2036 to speak with a DUID attorney at Gigstad Law Office, LLC today.

We’ve handled DUID defense in Overland Park and throughout Johnson County, including cases in municipal courts and the Johnson County District Court, since founding the firm in 2010. Robert Gigstad has secured numerous Not Guilty verdicts, acquittals, reductions, and dismissals in DUI and criminal defense cases across Kansas. When you retain us, we immediately request police reports, video and audio evidence, and officer certifications because the strength of your defense depends on what we find before the prosecution has time to build its case.

How a DUID Arrest Typically Unfolds

A DUID investigation usually begins when an officer develops suspicion of drug impairment and calls for a Drug Recognition Expert, or DRE, to evaluate the driver. DRE methodology is far from settled science. In Kansas, the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus test isn’t admissible in court as evidence of drug impairment. That’s a significant limitation that many drivers don’t know about at the roadside.

Under Kansas implied consent law, you may be required to provide a blood or urine sample. If the results show the presence of a substance, whether an illegal drug or a lawfully prescribed medication like Xanax, Vicodin, Ambien, or a muscle relaxer, you can be charged with a DUI involving drugs. Kansas law explicitly bars lawful prescription status as a defense under K.S.A. 8-1567(d). That said, a positive test result is not the same as proof of impairment. Many drugs remain detectable in blood or urine for days after their effects have worn off, creating a meaningful gap between what the lab finds and what the driver actually experienced behind the wheel.

Our attorneys have completed training in DUI detection and standardized field sobriety testing at the same level as law enforcement officers. That direct familiarity with the tests used in DUID investigations shapes how we examine every step of what happened before and after your arrest.

What the Prosecution Must Prove in a DUID Case

DUID covers both illegal street drugs and lawfully prescribed medications. Unlike alcohol DUI, Kansas sets no per se drug concentration threshold. To convict, the prosecution must prove beyond a reasonable doubt three distinct elements: that you operated or attempted to operate a vehicle, that you were under the influence of a drug while doing so, and that the drug rendered you incapable of safely driving.

That incapacity standard creates real room for defense. Different substances affect people differently, and a positive test result doesn’t translate directly into proof of driving impairment at the moment you were behind the wheel. The prosecution’s burden isn’t just to show a drug was present. It’s to show you couldn’t drive safely because of it. Those are two very different things, and that distinction is where a defense is often built.

Defense Strategies in a DUID Case

Depending on the facts of your case, we may be able to challenge the qualifications or methodology of the DRE, contest the chain of custody for blood or urine samples, identify lab errors or cross-contamination issues, or dispute whether the evidence actually establishes incapacity rather than mere presence of a substance. The penalties tied to a conviction are serious, and so is the collateral damage to employment, professional licensing, and driving privileges that can follow. We evaluate every aspect of the evidence, including lab procedures, test administration, officer certifications, and anything that could produce a false or unreliable result.

Our attorneys are members of the National College for DUI Defense and the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. Robert Gigstad has been recognized as a Super Lawyers Rising Star for nine consecutive years, 2016 through 2024, and as one of The National Trial Lawyers: Top 100 Trial Lawyers. Gigstad Law Office, LLC was voted Best Law Firm in Johnson County for 2023, 2024, and 2025. You don’t have to face these charges alone.

Contact an Overland Park DUI lawyer from our firm to build an aggressive defense against DUI charges involving drugs.