Las Vegas Metro Police are taking a very literal approach to training on cannabis impairment: watching people get high in real time.
Through hands-on "Green Lab" sessions, volunteers consume cannabis under controlled conditions while officers look on, then immediately run them through standardized sobriety checks. The goal is to help Metro officers better tell the difference between legal use and actual impairment behind the wheel, a judgment call that is far trickier with cannabis than with alcohol. The training push comes as Las Vegas adjusts to licensed consumption lounges and growing questions about how to keep roads safe.
As reported by FOX5 Las Vegas, Metro partnered with Planet 13 so officers could watch volunteers inhale or ingest cannabis, then attempt balance, coordination and cognition exercises. The station noted that its June 3 segment included footage of officers performing standardized field sobriety evaluations on the participants after they dosed.
Meeting materials from the Nevada Advisory Committee on Traffic Safety show the Green Lab was sponsored by Planet 13 Dispensary and quote one dosed participant saying he would have driven based on how he felt, without realizing he was legally impaired. That detail is a big part of why state and local traffic planners tracked the exercise and folded it into Nevada's broader impaired driving strategy, which the documents say drew positive feedback from participating agencies.
What Green Labs Actually Teach Officers
Green Lab sessions give officers a side by side look at how different products, doses and people behave, so they can refine what they are seeing during a roadside stop instead of relying on the smell of cannabis alone. Training advocates and law enforcement trade coverage describe setups where volunteers consume regulated amounts, then perform standardized field sobriety tests and other tasks while officers observe how cannabis impairment can vary from person to person and product to product.
Police1 and IACP materials describe Green Labs as an add on, not a replacement, for ARIDE and DRE certification tracks that agencies already use for impaired driving enforcement.
Planet 13, Consumption Lounges And The Local Picture
The Nevada Cannabis Compliance Board lists Planet 13's DAZED! consumption lounge among the state's licensed lounges, which means the company operates an on site venue at its Desert Inn location. Nevada Cannabis Compliance Board records maintain the official license listings, and Planet 13's own site confirms the Desert Inn SuperStore address and operations.
With a regulated lounge operating on the same site, public safety officials and industry representatives say training for both officers and staff is aimed at cutting the chances that someone who is actually impaired gets back behind the wheel after a visit.
Experts Urge Caution And More Tools
Federal safety officials and training programs have repeatedly noted that standardized field sobriety tests and THC measurements are more complex than the familiar alcohol testing playbook. They point agencies toward DRE and ARIDE training and call for continued research on how cannabis affects driving.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has long promoted expanded drug impaired driving training and resources to help states balance public safety with legal cannabis use. The Green Lab work in Las Vegas fits into a broader national trend that tries to give officers more practical, real world exposure to the wide range of cannabis effects they may see on the roadside.
