New law seeks to help clear up Washington’s DUI testing backlog

By: Jake Goldstein-Street

Outlets: Washington State Standard

Published: March 19, 2026

Words: 643

Last Updated: 1 day, 21 hours ago

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Thousands of cases have piled up in Washington as they await state testing to confirm if a driver was under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

Prosecutors say this is leaving people on the road despite potentially having driven impaired, while authorities await results.

To relieve pressure on the Washington State Patrol’s toxicology lab, a new law signed Wednesday would allow accredited private labs to conduct these tests for impaired driving offenses. The …

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