Drunk driving: its factors and offenses in New York State

People in New York State invariably understand that being arrested and charged with drunk driving can lead to various consequences. The amount of alcohol in the system is important for drunk driving charges, but it is not necessary to be above the generally accepted level of .08 blood-alcohol content to be charged. Less alcohol in the system combined with other indications of impairment can lead to charges.

There are five factors that dictate how impaired a person is: how much they have had to drink; whether they have eaten and how much while consuming alcohol; how long the person was drinking alcohol; body weight and biological sex. People who have been drinking do not have a way to become sober enough to drive before the alcohol has left the system. That can only happen after enough time has passed for the alcohol to have been absorbed.

There are six different alcohol-related DWI offenses. Driving While Intoxicated will be charged if the person has a blood-alcohol content that registers .08 or higher or there is other evidence of intoxication. If it is a commercial driver, the level is .04 BAC. Aggravated Driving While Intoxicated is when the driver has a BAC of .18 or above. Driving While Ability Impaired by Alcohol is when the driver has a BAC of higher than .05, but less than .07. Drivers can face DWI charges if they are deemed to be under the influence of a combination of drugs or alcohol.

Drivers are required to take a blood, breath or urine test when asked to do so. Failure can result in a allegation of refusing a breath test, which has penalties of its own. Finally, there is the Zero Tolerance Law for people under the age of 21. The drinking age in the state is 21. If a person is caught with a BAC between .02 and .07 while driving under the age of 21, it violates this law.

Those who are arrested for DWI offenses listed above need to be aware of the consequences including the possibility of lost driving privileges, fines and even incarceration. Lodging a strong defense is essential. For that, a lawyer experienced in drunk driving cases is key.

Source: dmv.ny.gov, “Penalties for alcohol or drug-related violations,” accessed on April 23, 2017