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How To: Avoid a DUI

At first glance this appears to be a rather pointless How To article, does it not? I mean come on, the solution is simple: don’t drink and drive, right? Right.

But the fact of the matter is that people DO drink and drive; lots of them. There are over 200,000 DUI arrests every year in the state of California alone. California averages about 1,500 alcohol related fatal traffic accidents per year. Out of California’s roughly 27.5 million adults, that means nearly one in every 135 will get a DUI in their lifetime. Those may seem like good odds, but when you factor in those who do not drink, those who do not drive, etc. the odds begin to narrow considerably. The fact that you are reading this magazine means that you are probably the type to enjoy a nice alcoholic beverage form time to time and as such, are most likely at a greater risk than most.

The simple truth of the matter is that if you drink and drive you are taking a tremendous risk not only to your own health and safety, but to those of others. Beyond that, the repercussions of being arrested for a DUI are many and severe. Penalties vary from county to county but in California you can expect to pay about $2,700 dollars in total fees for your first offense. If you set up a payment schedule and miss a payment, you may be issued with a warrant for your arrest.

A shocking consequence for many first time offenders is the mandatory two day jail sentence. Second offenders can look forward to as many as ten days in jail. Depending on the specifics of your case, this can be exchanged for community service. You have seen these people before, you know, the ones in the orange vests picking up trash on the side of the freeway? With a DUI that could be you. You also will be placed on probation for a period of three to five years. Violate probation for any reason and the consequences can be dire. On top of this you will have a misdemeanor, possibly a felony on your record. It stays there for ten years. This can cause serious problems with any attempts at getting a job. A felony offense will close more doors to you than you can imagine.

For most, worse than the fines is the automatic license suspension. This can have terrible consequences for a family if the primary wage earner is no longer able to drive to work, or if a spouse is unable to take kids to school, etc. But you can get a restricted license, right? That depends on several factors. If convicted of a DUI, the DMV automatically takes away your license for one month with no option for a restricted license. An important fact to take note of is that you only have two weeks from the time of arrest to schedule a hearing with the DMV to fight the license suspension.

Typically after this you will be unable to reapply for a driver’s license for an additional five months. It is important to note that a DUI is dealt with by both the DMV and the Courts. They only loosely influence one another and the DMV has the ability to extend your license suspension without any approval from the court system. Even with a restricted license, however, you are only able to drive to and from work and school. As a rough rule of thumb, this means only driving on week days during working hours.

You can also look forward to taking DUI and AA (Alcoholics Anonymous) classes for a three month period of time on a first offense. These constitute several two hour meetings per week. With a second offense, you get to enjoy two full years of classes as the state of California has recently increased the penalty for a second DUI. These classes are offered a limited amount of times per week, and are nonnegotiable. This can interfere with work and family schedules. Missing a class results in a $30 fine and possibly a bench warrant. The classes themselves are not pleasant, and are often filled with a rather colorful assortment of individuals.

With a DUI, beyond the fines, a long term financial consequence is the increased insurance costs. You must provide an SR22, which is proof of paid DUI level insurance to get your license back. The cost of this insurance varies but typically will cost an additional $3,000 per year. The length of time you will pay the increased amount is dependent upon the specifics of your conviction, but can last as many as seven years.

Think about that before stepping behind the wheel of a car after even a few drinks next time. In comparison a cab fare does not seem so bad does it? Especially when split between friends, it can be a much cheaper alternative. Just think of it as part of the cost of a night out. Take a parking ticket on your car if you have to and get it in the morning. If you drive, get arrested and find yourself sitting in your 20th two hour class listening to another alcoholic share his tale of misery, you will be wishing you had only had a parking ticket.

So when do you know you have had too much to drink? When you have had one drink. You can fail a breathalyzer test after only one drink, believe it or not. Breathalyzers are not terribly accurate when used incorrectly. However, as a rule of thumb, if you consume one beer equivalent drink you will increase your blood alcohol content (BAC) by .02%. There are a lot of factors involved and as such it is no exact science, but you can expect to get a DUI if you have had four such drinks before getting behind the wheel. Another thing to consider is the fact that your BAC can spike under conditions of high stress…such as when you are being pulled over by a police officer. Your BAC can increase by as much as .03% under these circumstances.

How about waiting a while before driving? A healthy adult liver will burn about .02% every hour. Does that mean if you drink one beer an hour you will be ok? No, it does not. The bottom line is that there are far too many factors in play to be able to guesstimate what your BAC is, especially after you have been drinking. Just take a cab or plan ahead to have a designated driver and save yourself from a nightmare of an experience.

Knowing all this, if you still make the choice to drive after having drank; then this is what you should know about your rights. If you are pulled over you do not have to answer any questions the police officer asks you. You have the right to not incriminate yourself. Does this mean you should be rude and non cooperative or lie? Absolutely not, be as polite as possible and do not lie as this will only make your situation worse. Simply tell the officer that you have been advised by your lawyer to not answer his questions. If the police officer asks you to step out of the car, ask if you are under arrest. If you are not, then you do not have to get out of the car. If you are asked to perform field sobriety tests, politely refuse. These tests are not intended to judge your level of inebriation; they are recorded so that the officer can build a case to be used to convict you of a DUI. However, know this, if you refuse to take any tests such as a breathalyzer, blood, urine or field sobriety test, you will automatically lose your license for a year, regardless of whether or not you are convicted of a DUI. This can be a more desirable consequence in some circumstances. If you opt to take a blood test, it takes time to get you to a hospital and for them to draw blood which can give you time to burn off more alcohol. However, if you have any illegal substances in your system-- some such as marijuana hang out in your bloodstream for as long as 30 days-- these will show up. Be aware of the fact that the less cooperative you are, the more suspicious the officer will be of you and the more he or she will be likely to escalate the situation.

If arrested for a DUI you have several options. The biggest question most people face is whether or not to get a lawyer. This will vary with each individual situation. Listen to a lawyer and they will try to scare you into hiring them every time. The fact of the matter is that often a lawyer is money wasted when arrested for a DUI. Unless there are strong mitigating circumstances, you will not be able to get out of the conviction. Typical fees for a DUI lawyer in California run about $2,500. This means that best case scenario you pay roughly the same amount in fees, but avoid all of the other consequences. Worst case, you doubled your fees and still suffer all of the other consequences.

The lawyer really is situational. If you are convicted of a felony DUI, absolutely get a lawyer. If your BAC was close to .o8% then yes, hire a lawyer and try to get your conviction lowered to a Wet and Reckless which carries far less severe penalties. If your BAC was over .1% and you were pulled over for a legitimate reason, such as a broken tail light, speeding, etc. it would be advisable to plead no contest in court, take it on the chin and move on with life. The only way a lawyer can mitigate or dismiss a DUI is if he can prove that the police officer had no reason to pull you over, or that the officer made a mistake in gathering evidence to prove that you were driving while intoxicated. Outside of that, there is not much that can be done.

So do not drink and drive, know your rights and know that Happy Hour Magazine is absolutely opposed to it. Also, neither I nor any of the editors is or has been a lawyer in the state of California. The DUI laws in our state are complex and change often, do some homework yourself to get the most up to date information. Now hop in a cab with your friends and go check out a great happy hour featured in Happy Hour Magazine!