Blood Alcohol Content

The definition of blood alcohol content is the concentration of alcohol in one’s bloodstream, expressed as a percentage. Blood alcohol content, or BAC, is used to determine whether a person is legally intoxicated, especially under a driving while intoxicated law. In the field of traffic safety, BAC is expressed as the percentage of alcohol in deciliters of blood--for example, 0.10 percent. A 160-pound man, for instance, will have a BAC of approximately 0.04 percent 1 hour after consuming two 12-ounce beers or two other standard drinks on an empty stomach. All State Laws have specific driver BAC limits, which vary by State. According to these laws, operating a vehicle while having a BAC over the given limit is illegal.

Have you or someone you know been involved in an accident or been charged because of a high blood alcohol content? If so, contact one of our experienced DUI lawyers today!

Having a BAC above the legal limit can result in one or more of the following consequences:

• Vehicle Impoundment
• Suspension of Vehicle Registration
• Vehicle Confiscation
• Vehicle Forfeiture
• Vehicle Immobilization
• Special License Plates
• Ignition Interlock

The BAC limit for drivers age 21 and older in most States is 0.08 percent, although some of the states, including Colorado, Mississippi, New York, and West Virginia, to name a few, allow a BAC limit of .10 percent. People are affected differently at different BAC levels. For example, a driver's ability to divide attention between two or more sources of visual information can be impaired by BAC's of 0.02 percent or lower. However, impairments usually occur once an individual's BAC level reaches .05 percent or higher. The impairments consistent with this BAC level include:

• slowed eye movements
• visual perception
• reaction time
• certain types of steering tasks
• information processing

Research has shown that the risk of a car accident increases significantly as BAC levels increase. When comparing drivers who have not consumed any alcohol, the risk of a single-vehicle fatal accident for drivers with a BAC level between 0.02 and 0.04 percent is approximated to be 1.4 times higher. For those individuals with BAC levels between 0.05 and 0.09 percent, the risk jumps to 11.1 times higher. Once drivers have reached the illegal BAC limit of .01 percent, their risk of being involved in a fatal car accident increases to at least 48 times when compared to someone who was not drinking.

Have you or someone you know been involved in an accident or been charged because of a high blood alcohol content? If so, contact one of our experienced DUI attorneys today!