ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) -- A motorist accused of "huffing" stimulants from an aerosol can before getting into a deadly wreck cannot be charged with driving while intoxicated, New York's highest court ruled Wednesday.
The Legislature never included inhalants with alcohol and certain other drugs in the definition of intoxicated driving, the Court of Appeals ruled.
Several counts, including manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide, remain against Vincent Litto, who is charged in a 2004 crash in Brooklyn that killed a 17-year-old girl and injured others, including himself. Prosecutors allege he was driving when he sprayed a can of "Dust Off" into his mouth, and crashed into an oncoming car less than a minute later.
"If defendant did what the prosecution charges, then his conduct was reprehensible," wrote Chief Judge Judith Kaye in the unanimous decision. "Perhaps gaps exist in the law. ... However, a determination by this court that intoxication in Vehicle and Traffic Law includes the use of any substance would improperly override the legislative policy judgment."
Neither could the driver have been charged under a 1966 law against driving while high on drugs because that law covers only "explicitly enumerated drugs," the decision stated.
Details here from the AP. (via How Appealing)