Expert: Peter L. - 10/31/2009

Question
QUESTION: I am 18 yrs old and currently in a drug court program. Prior to program I smoked marijuana many times a week. I'm 6'3 weigh 220 lbs.I stopped smoking about a month ago. I'm tested twice a week . My levels had come down to below 50nl about two weeks ago(which is passing for my program)for two tests. On this last test they said my levels had gone up but were below a 100. I have "NOT NOT" smoked. How is this possible?

ANSWER: I have seen this a number of times.  It can be attributable to the fact that sometimes marijuana will leave the cells of the body at varying rates, not necessarily always in a predictable and linear fashion.  A marijuana level in a urine screen can rise temporarily for a number of reasons, according to a lab we use in my program.  However, after a while there should be no marijuana detectable if there has been absolutely no use.  I think more time has to pass than the usual 28 days in which it is believed it can be detected.  The fact is that when you have stopped smoking marijuana, the level is going to be zero eventually.  It's just a matter of physics and chemistry.  The question is how long someone is willing to wait.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: As I said I am in drug court. Can you give me info or where to go to get info about the reasons for the rise, according  to your lab, so I can relate them to the court. Thank you for your quick response to my inital question.

Answer
I can't specifically advise you with respect to getting support for your case.  You might want to check out websites of labs doing urinalysis for illicit drug use.  There are dozens of these labs, and they often have a "frequently asked questions" page where this might be discussed. Also do a general internet search using keywords. You nevertheless may have a hard time getting the drug court to accept what you discover; they don't have to believe what information you present them and make changes to your legal status.  If I can offer a bit of advice, I would look at this in terms of motivation to avoid situations like this in the future.  You are at the mercy of the legal process which might not appear fair in your view, and the only way to avoid situations like this is to make sure you have no marijuana in your system.

Best,
Peter