If you have been arrested for impaired driving, you may need legal representation, especially if you want to challenge blood or breath test results. Contact a local DUI attorney today to learn about the strengths and weaknesses of your case and be better prepared for important decisions. Drunk driving laws themselves work similarly to zero-tolerance drinking and driving laws for underage drivers. Each state also has a law that prohibits anyone under the age of 21 from driving with an alcohol content in its system. The illegal category itself can trace its origins to the Supreme Court`s 1898 case of Addyston Pipe & Steel Co. v. U.S., 175 U.S. 211 (1898). Blood alcohol limits, set by the per se DUI laws, do not deal with driving under the influence of drugs. However, a growing number of states have laws in themselves that deal with drugs while driving. The states that have these types of laws on their books are Arizona, Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Utah, Virginia and Wisconsin. Of these, three states (Nevada, Ohio and Virginia) set specific limits for the presence of intoxicating drugs, while the others establish a zero-tolerance rule regarding the presence of intoxicating drugs in a person`s system. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Sobering Facts: Alcohol-impaired driving pamphlets. Updated August 26, 2020. However, if you had a blood alcohol level of 0.08 or higher at the time of your arrest, hiring a lawyer could be a waste of time and another expense in an already very expensive trip. Underage drivers often face even stricter measures than the standard blood alcohol levels themselves. Motorists under the legal drinking age often face “zero tolerance” rules that make it illegal to test for any concentration of alcohol in their blood. The rationale behind these laws is that alcohol consumption is prohibited to anyone under the age of 21 and therefore any amount of alcohol in a minor driver`s system should be punished. This type of offence usually results in the loss of driving licences, to varying degrees. Many states are passing new laws to address the growing problems of drug-impaired driving. Some states have passed laws that set specific limits on the presence of certain drugs in the system in order for a person to be guilty of driving under the influence of drugs.
Contact a DUI qualified attorney to ensure your rights are protected. In addition to the challenges that may arise in impaired driving cases, prosecutions per se in drug cases face the added challenge of having to prove the presence of a certain type of prohibited substance listed in a defendant`s system. Although alcohol comes in one form, drug testing and analysis can sometimes be a little more complicated. The fact that some drugs remain in a user`s system for days or even weeks after their intoxicating effects are drained makes things even more difficult. The email address cannot be subscribed. Please try again. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 21 years Minimum age to consume alcohol. Updated September 3, 2020. The existence of these laws in the U.S. means it`s important for people who drink to realize that no matter how sober and behaved they feel, it`s their blood alcohol level that matters to the law once they get behind the wheel. If it exceeds the legal limit per se, it is legally presumed that they are weakened.
These laws make it easier for prosecutors to determine that a person has been impaired without requiring a lot of on-site assessments, such as field sobriety tests and the like. Learn more about FindLaw`s newsletters, including our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. This website is protected by reCAPTCHA and Google`s privacy policy and terms of service apply. Many drunk driving laws make driving with a blood alcohol level above a certain limit (such as 0.05% or 0.08%) an illegal act in itself. Simple as such; in its own nature without reference to its relationship. Negligence Act: Negligence per se is an act that is considered inherently negligent because it violates a law or regulation. In such a case, the plaintiff must not only prove due negligence, but only prove that the defendant violated the law, that the law includes safety, that the act caused the kind of harm that the law was intended to prevent, and that the plaintiff fell within the protected class of the law. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Presidential Initiative to Make .08 BAC the National Legal Limit – A Progress Report.
Published January 2000. Websites operated or sponsored by lawyers strongly recommend that you contact a lawyer if you are charged with impaired driving or impaired driving or any other charge of impaired driving. They recommend that you speak to an experienced drink-driving lawyer as soon as possible to “protect your rights” and determine if “defenses” are available to you. “Per se” is a Latin expression meaning “in itself”. In other words, a blood alcohol level of 0.08 alone means that you are guilty of impaired driving, regardless of the other evidence. Created by FindLaw`s team of writers and legal writers| Last update 25. October 2018 However, if a driver has a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08 and the arresting officer has observed obvious signs of impairment – such as speech or circulation impairment – additional trips may be charged during impaired driving as well as impaired driving or driving under the influence of alcohol. The push to make 0.08 the legal level for drunk driving across the country was inspired by scientific research showing the standard would significantly reduce alcohol-related deaths on the roads. The failure of a field sobriety test while filmed with the dashboard camera of a patrol car convicted many drivers of drunk driving, even with a blood alcohol level below the legal limit. Politicians can`t block voters on Facebook, court rulings If you are arrested on suspicion of drunk driving and record a blood alcohol level of 0.08 on a breath test or subsequent blood test, you will be convicted of drunk driving based on this information alone. The state does not have to prove that you were impaired, crossed a transit line, or failed a field sobriety test. Even if your blood alcohol level is less than 0.08, you can be charged with unfitness to drive in most states if the arresting officer can provide specific evidence that you were driving during the disability.
Drunk Driving Act: By itself, there are also drunk driving laws in some states that make it illegal to drive a vehicle above a certain blood alcohol level. Typically 0.08% measured by a blood, breath or urine test. The charge of violating the law itself is based solely on the body chemistry of the accused. The prosecutor`s office only has to prove that the driver was above the legal limit at the time of the trip. Because drug testing in your system isn`t as sharp as alcohol testing, and there are so many factors that could affect the results — such as how long certain medications stay in the system — it might be wise to hire a lawyer for drug-impaired driving fees. Learn more about FindLaw`s newsletters, including our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. This website is protected by reCAPTCHA and Google`s privacy policy and terms of service apply. In U.S.
law, the term illegal per se means that the act is inherently illegal.