I like to check in on what's happening in my old home state of Iowa, and in doing so today I was drawn to this KCRG story on an (allegedly) very stupid and irresponsible driver:
A Cedar Rapids man was charged with Driving Left of Center and Glue Sniffing.
An officer was traveling westbound in the 4500 block of 1st Avenue East around 5 p.m. on August 29 when they saw a car driven by James Knight, 58, traveling in the left lane veer into the right lane.
The car crossed the dotted line and the driver corrected it, but then crossed the solid yellow line dividing the westbound lanes with the center turn lane.
The officer saw the driver holding a canister and suspected Knight may be huffing. He followed the car and when it stopped, the officer got out of his squad car and approached Knight's car.
The driver appeared to be passed out or had blacked out. When the officer knocked on the window, the driver appeared startled and the car began to roll forward.
The officer told the driver to put the car in park but the driver didn’t seem to understand and appeared to be in some intoxicated state.
The vehicle rolled forward and hit another parked car.
The officer was able to put the car in park. Knight was holding an aerosol can and denied huffing the gases out of the can.
When the story's headline contains "glue sniffing," it's difficult not to click.
Knight's reported behavior is more dangerous than driving over the center line, so it is understandable that the authorities wanted to charge him with something more than simply driving over the center line. Knight probably cannot be charged with driving under the influence (or operating while under the influence, to use Iowa's language) as this statute (Iowa Code 321J.2) is limited to those under the influence of alcohol or drugs. "Drug," is conveniently undefined under Iowa's OWI laws. Unless there is an extremely expansive definition of "drug" elsewhere in the Iowa Code that applies, the language of the OWI statute appears to foreclose charging Knight with this offense, which is most likely why Knight was not charged with OWI.
But does Knight's conduct constitute "glue sniffing?"
To answer this, we need the text of the Cedar Rapids City Ordinance that bans glue sniffing. You can find it here, and the complete text of the ordinance is as follows:
62.29 - GLUE SNIFFING.
(a) As used in this section the term model glue shall mean any glue or cement containing toluene, acetone, or other solvent or chemical having the property of releasing toxic vapors.
(b) No person shall, for the purpose of causing a condition of intoxication, euphoria, excitement, exhilaration, stupefaction, or dulling of the senses or nervous system, smell or inhale the fumes from any model glue; provided, however, that this section shall not apply to the inhalation of any anesthesia for medical or dental purposes.
(c) No person shall possess, buy, sell, transfer possession, or receive possession of any model glue for the illegal purposes set forth in subsection (b) hereof.
Knight was reportedly in possession of an "aerosol can," and was presumably suspected of huffing gasses out of the can. People can get high from huffing or sniffing fumes from aerosol cans, as noted by the National Institute on Drug Abuse. But while the end result of sniffing these fumes may be similar to the result of sniffing glue, King's alleged conduct does not appear to fall under the scope of the glue sniffing ordinance.
Based on the language of the ordinance, it does not seem to apply to instances where a person sniffs fumes from an aerosol can to get high. The ordinance defines "model glue" as "any glue or cement containing toluene, acetone, or other solvent or chemical having the property of releasing toxic vapors." This definition is irritating, since it essentially uses the word "glue" to define "glue." While a number of chemicals are named, and while the catch-all at the end of the definition includes other toxic vapors, these chemicals are restricted to chemicals contained in "glue or cement." While I am not an expert on what is going on inside of an aerosol can, Wikipedia informs me that the cans contain small particles or liquids that are dispersed with a propellant, which creates the pressure that forces the particles/liquid out of the can as a spray. This sounds like quite the opposite of glue or cement, which have high viscosity.
It's possible one might attempt to apply the "or other solvent or chemical having the property of releasing toxic vapors" portion of the model glue definition to an aerosol can. But this reading is not correct, since this catch-all provision is part of a list that modifies the terms "glue" or "cement." The most subtle revision to the statute that could support such an interpretation would be to separate the named chemicals from the catch-all -- for example: "the term model glue shall mean any glue or cement containing toluene or acetone, or other solvent or chemical having the property of releasing toxic vapors." If this is what the ordinance said, Knight's conduct could potentially fall under it. As written, however, sniffing or huffing from an aerosol can does not fall under the language of Cedar Rapids' glue-sniffing ordinance.
[UPDATE - 8/30/2017]
A friend surprised me with a sudden outpouring of his proclaimed knowledge and enthusiasm for glue and its diverse potential forms. He informed me that glue does not necessarily have high viscosity, and that rubber cement, for example, could become fluid enough to be aerosolized if enough of a solvent were added to it. Indeed, here is a "Multipurpose Adhesive Aerosol" that I found with some quick Googling! I suppose that the law could be interpreted to apply to aerosolized adhesives, as glue can be defined by its function of binding objects together, although it most commonly refers to a substance that absorbs water and becomes a viscous solution with strong adhesive properties. Perhaps the courts will one day address these pressing questions regarding the true definition of glue.
Of course, it is doubtful that Knight was sniffing aeresolized glue, unless he somehow even less intelligent than initially thought. Such a practice would carry the risk of gluing his nose shut while attempting to get high, an outcome that would not only be inconvenient and painful, but that would also prevent Knight from continuing to sniff the aerosol. I suspect that if Knight indeed was using an aeresolized substance to get high, it was likely a substance other than the aeresolized adhesive that I linked to above.
[UPDATE - 8/30/2017]
A friend surprised me with a sudden outpouring of his proclaimed knowledge and enthusiasm for glue and its diverse potential forms. He informed me that glue does not necessarily have high viscosity, and that rubber cement, for example, could become fluid enough to be aerosolized if enough of a solvent were added to it. Indeed, here is a "Multipurpose Adhesive Aerosol" that I found with some quick Googling! I suppose that the law could be interpreted to apply to aerosolized adhesives, as glue can be defined by its function of binding objects together, although it most commonly refers to a substance that absorbs water and becomes a viscous solution with strong adhesive properties. Perhaps the courts will one day address these pressing questions regarding the true definition of glue.
Of course, it is doubtful that Knight was sniffing aeresolized glue, unless he somehow even less intelligent than initially thought. Such a practice would carry the risk of gluing his nose shut while attempting to get high, an outcome that would not only be inconvenient and painful, but that would also prevent Knight from continuing to sniff the aerosol. I suspect that if Knight indeed was using an aeresolized substance to get high, it was likely a substance other than the aeresolized adhesive that I linked to above.
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