What is a fair level for a DUI conviction?

[True Dough]

Utah is about to become the first state to lower the blood alcohol level to 0.05. percent for a motorist to be convicted. I'm in favor of this. I would have no problem with zero tolerance, to be honest. It's irresponsible to drive while impaired. Period.

Utah Gov. Gary Herbert (R) is likely to sign new legislation passed Wednesday that would make the Beehive State as intolerant to drunk driving as most European countries.

State senators on Wednesday voted to advance a bill that would drop the legal blood-alcohol limit to 0.05 percent, down from the current limit of 0.08 percent.

Legislators who backed the bill said the average man would reach the 0.05 limit after three drinks and the average woman after two drinks.

The American Beverage Institute (ABI), a trade group that represents bars and restaurants, said those estimates are one drink more than the levels would take in reality.
The National Transportation Safety Board recommended in 2013 that states reduce blood alcohol limits to 0.05 percent. The board said at the time the risk of a crash would be cut in half by lowering the rate.

http://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/323129-utah-poised-to-enact-nations-strictest-dui-law

[Ohioblue22]

1. in ohio we have the ovi there is no legal level if the officer

thinks you are impaired he can arrest you take ypu to a hospital and have hunt thru your body looking for anything

[True Dough]

7. Now this I am not partial to

It leaves too much at the discretion of the police officer. Many of them are well-intentioned and upstanding citizens. However, there are some bad seeds and there's potential for abuse of power -- or even a misunderstanding.

A hand-held breathalyzer should be option #1. A field sobriety test performed in front of the dashboard camera should be option #2.

[Ohioblue22]

11. it was to address people under the influence of pills but

yea if you were on a horse in the middle of your 5 Acres and some officer sees you and thinks you're under the influence he can go up and drag you off your horse and drag you to jail all based on what the officer thinks

[True Dough]

12. Not good

Not good at all.

[burnbaby]

2. .05 is like a glass of wine

I certainly don't promote drinking and driving, but sometimes when I go out to eat I like a martini before my meal.

Maybe we should just bring back local pub. One we can walk to. it would be safer, but I still want that martini with my meal......

[SFnomad]

5. A glass of wine, a can of beer and a 1.5 oz shot of 80 proof spirits are roughly equivalent

when it comes to alcohol content, here in the United States.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Standard_drink

And if that drink takes you to .05 depends on a number of factors ... sex (male v. female), weight, if you have food in your system and what type and how long it takes you to drink that drink.

[Eyeball_Kid]

3. My teaching materials from long ago stated that if you drink about 3 cans of beer in an hour,

you're pushing .08. For most people, 3 cans in an hour gives a noticeable buzz at a minimum. Most bodies also catabolize alcohol at the rate of about an ounce an hour.

People live imperfect, occasionally ragtag lives. Bringing the BAL to .05 is pushing practicality. For some, we're talking about one drink, depending on stomach load, being enough to literally alter the course of one's life, because of employment, fines and insurance rates. I'd rather go with .08.

[SFnomad]

8. 3 cans of been in an hour only pushing .08? Only if

you're a guy that weights at least 200lbs or a woman that weight at least 220lbs.

CA Dept. of Motor Vehicles DUI Chart


You can take .01 off those values in that chart for the 1 hour time you proposed.

[The Polack MSgt]

4. Last I heard - most drunk drivivng accidents occur when the drivers BAC

was 0.16 or higher. Already twice the most common BAC limit of 0.08

Lower limits don't make us safer. The drop from 0.1 to 0.08 only enabled county sheriff's departments to generate more fines and auto insurance companies to rake in YUUUGE profits from "Drunk drivers" - But had no real affect on accident rates

No alcohol at all for the driver is at least logical.

Some alcohol allowed, but at a legal limit that is ludicrously low is just a way to fleece the population and will not make us any safer.

[MindPilot]

10. Agreed. All this does is increase the arrest rates at checkpoints.

And i am adamantly opposed to checkpoints--for anything.

Just another excuse for the pigs to fuck with people and enhance their revenue stream.

[TexasProgresive]

6. In Ireland it is a .04. I believe Sweden is .02

I think all drinking establishments should be in walking distance of their patrons without any parking facilities nearby. I am not against consuming alcohol just driving after drinking, PERIOD.

[True Dough]

9. Exactly!

If it's too far to walk, call a cab! Have a sober friend drive you home. Get your sibling/cousin/neighbor to come pick you up.

There are plenty of alternatives to getting behind the wheel while tipsy.

[OnDoutside]

14. And here in Ireland there are rumblings about reducing it further. The big problem is rural areas

where the pub is the community centre, and there are no buses or taxis. Farmers would go the 2 or 3 miles for a pint and meet up with neighbours, yet they could be bagged at 1 pint or less. There is no excuse for being over the limit in a town/city where taxis and buses are available, which is where I am.

Penalties for drink driving offences

Penalties on conviction for drink driving will vary depending on the amount of alcohol that has been detected in your system. Another factor the court will take account of is whether the offence is your first offence or otherwise. Under the penalties introduced by the Road Traffic Act 2006 all convictions for drink driving carried a mandatory disqualification from driving.

From 28 October 2011 (through the Road Traffic Act 2010) the penalties for drink driving offences are changed.

Administrative penalty system

If you hold a valid licence/permit at the time of the offence and your alcohol level is below a certain limit, you will be issued with a fixed penalty notice. If you pay the fine stated on the notice within 28 days, the additional penalty stated on the notice will be imposed but you will not have to go to court. You are not eligible for a drink driving fixed penalty notice if you have received a similar notice within the previous 3 years. The alcohol limits and penalties applied under the fixed penalty notice scheme are as set out below:






Driver type Concentration of alcohol Fine Additional penalty
Experienced drivers (a) Not exceeding 80mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood
(b) Not exceeding 107mg of alcohol per 100ml of urine
(c) Not exceeding 35mcg of alcohol per 100ml of breath €200 3 penalty points
Experienced drivers (a) Exceeding 80mg but not exceeding 100mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood
(b) Exceeding 107mg but not exceeding 135mg of alcohol per 100ml of urine
(c) Exceeding 35mcg but not exceeding 44mcg of alcohol per 100ml of breath €400 6 months disqualification
Other drivers (a) Not exceeding 80mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood
(b) Not exceeding 107mg of alcohol per 100ml of urine
(c) Not exceeding 35mcg of alcohol per 100ml of breath €200 3 months disqualification

Court system

If you have to go to court the disqualification periods for drink driving convictions are as follows:





Concentration of alcohol First offence (period of disqualification) Second offence (period of disqualification)
(a) Not exceeding 80mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood
(b) Not exceeding 107mg of alcohol per 100ml of urine
(c) Not exceeding 35mcg of alcohol per 100ml of breath 6 months 1 year
(a) Exceeding 80mg but not exceeding 100mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood
(b) Exceeding 107mg but not exceeding 135mg of alcohol per 100ml of urine
(c) Exceeding 35mcg but not exceeding 44mcg of alcohol per 100ml of breath 1 year 2 years
(a) Exceeding 100mg but not exceeding 150mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood
(b) Exceeding 135mg but not exceeding 200mg of alcohol per 100ml of urine
(c) Exceeding 44mcg but not exceeding 66mcg of alcohol per 100ml of breath 2 years 4 years
(a) Exceeding 150mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood
(b) Exceeding 200mg of alcohol per 100ml of urine
(c) Exceeding 66mcg of alcohol per 100ml of breath 3 years 6 years

The above penalties are minimum penalties and the judge has the discretion to increase these penalties.

The maximum penalty for drink driving is €5,000 or 6 months in prison or both.

[alarimer]

13. Ridiculous.

Texting while driving, for instance, can actually be WORSE that driving under the influence. Driving while too tired can also be as bad. So do we punish people for those things equivalently? No, we do not.

I think zero tolerance is just an excuse for not using logic and reason in an individual case. Punishment should vary depending on what actually happens. Property damage and injury should result in stiffer punishment than no damage or injury.

A 0.05 level is probably equivalent to driving while slightly sleep-deprived. And most accidents occur, as someone else mentioned, at much higher levels. It comes down to what we are interested in. Are we as a society interested in stopping people driving under the influence, texting while driving, or driving while sleepy? Or are we interested in punishment? Punishment does not necessarily get you a reduction in any of those things. Education probably would, though.

[True Dough]

15. There's been a ton of time, effort and money devoted to education

And perhaps it's made some difference. I'm not opposed to cracking down on texting and driving either. It definitely is a HUGE distraction and needs to be taken very seriously.

And, yes, more fatalities do happen as BAC levels climb. That doesn't mean there aren't a significant number that occur at lower levels. It's worthwhile to make that a punitive situation, IMO. You want to drink and drive and endanger others? You pay a price. You want to continue to do that? You should kiss your driving privileges goodbye.