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Key State Laws Enacted to Prevent Impaired Driving
Strong, consistently enforced
laws are critical to the success of impaired driving prevention
and deterrence efforts. Research indicates that the different
types of laws summarized below help reduce the incidence of
impaired driving.
Have you or someone you know been charged with drunk driving? If so, contact one of our drunk driving lawyers in your area today!
Illegal Per Se Laws make it illegal in and of itself to drive with a BAC
measured at or above an established level. Forty-nine states
have established per se laws (Massachusetts is the exception). As of July 2002, 31 states, Washington DC and Puerto
Rico had
.08 as the established BAC level, while 18 states remained
at the .10 level. In other words, it is illegal to drive a
motor vehicle if a driver has a BAC level of .08 or .10, depending
on the state. Research indicates that virtually all drivers
show impairment in driving ability at .08 BAC, and the majority
exhibit serious deterioration. Virtually all highway safety
organizations and transportation safety agencies support .08
BAC, and in October 2000, Congress passed .08 BAC as the national
standard for impaired driving regulations. States that do
not adopt .08 BAC by a certain date will be denied a portion
of their highway construction funds.
Dram Shop/Social Host
Liability Laws state that a person who serves alcoholic beverages
to intoxicated individuals may be liable for the damages caused
by such individuals. In some states, a server may also be
liable for injuries sustained by intoxicated individuals.
Minimum Legal Drinking
Age (MLDA) Laws make it illegal for individuals younger than 21 to purchase, possess or
consume alcoholic beverages or to misrepresent their age to
obtain such beverages.
Zero
Tolerance Laws make it illegal for drivers younger than 21 to drive
with any measurable amount of alcohol in their system—regardless
of the BAC limit for drivers over 21. Many states set the
limit for drivers under 21 at .02 BAC or below to help reduce
legal challenges based on claims that mouthwash, gum or cold
medicine can be responsible for a positive but very low BAC
measurement. However, there is no evidence that such substances
affect the standard breath analysis tests when conducted properly
or that other challenges to the accuracy of alcohol detection
equipment are valid. By late 1999, all states plus the District
of Columbia
had zero tolerance laws for youth.
Open
Container Laws prohibit the possession of any open alcoholic beverage
container and the consumption of any alcoholic beverage in
the passenger area of a motor vehicle. In 1998, the Federal
government took steps to encourage states to enact open container
laws by passing the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st
Century (TEA-21), which required states to enact open container
laws by October 1, 2000 or lose a portion of their Federal-aid highway construction
funds. To avoid having their funds transferred to other safety
activities, states must certify that they comply with Federal
requirements and that their open container law is in effect
and being enforced. By April 2002, 30 states and the District
of Columbia
had open container laws in effect.
Administrative License
Revocation (ALR) laws
involve license suspension or revocation following conviction
for impaired driving. ALR laws give state officials the authority
to immediately suspend the license of any driver who fails
or refuses to take a BAC test. Some states may restore driving
privileges on a limited basis due to demonstrated hardship,
as determined by the courts. Depending on the state, suspensions
range from seven days to six months for first-time offenders
and longer for repeat offenders. At the end of 2001, 42 states
and the District of Columbia had ALR laws in effect.
Vehicle and License
Plate Sanctions affect the vehicles or license plates DUI
/ DWI offenders. Actions states
can take include the following. Check with your State Department
of Transportation to determine the exact nature of laws in
your jurisdiction.
- Vehicle impoundment
- Suspension of vehicle registration
- Vehicle confiscation
- Vehicle forfeiture (sale of an offender’s vehicle)
- Vehicle immobilization (bars offender from using his or her car)
- Special license plates or plate markings (permit use of a vehicle
by family members of convicted DUI/DWI offenders)
- Ignition interlock (device that
measures alcohol concentration in the breath and is attached
to a vehicle's ignition system; a driver must have a BAC
below a certain level in order to start the vehicle)
State Drunk Driving Laws. Strong,
consistently enforced laws are critical to the success of
impaired driving prevention and deterrence efforts. Research
indicates that the different types of laws summarized below
help reduce the incidence of impaired driving.
Have you or someone you know been charged with drunk driving? If so, contact one of our drunk driving attorneys in your area today!
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