People who have had a drink or two (or three) often don’t realize that they shouldn’t drive because they’re over the legal limit for blood alcohol content. That could change if Uber (the app that connects people needing rides to those willing to offer them) is successful in a new partnership with Breathometer, a startup company featured on the Shark Tank television show last year. The partnership might not eliminate everyone’s need for a Los Angeles DUI attorney, but it could reduce the number of DUI arrests in the city and in others.
Breathometer gives people the ability to check their blood alcohol content. It works through a combination of a smart phone app connected by Bluetooth technology to a device that people breathe into after they’ve been drinking. In less than a minute, people can get their BAC measurements to determine whether or not they’re legally safe to drive.
The partnership between Uber and Breathometer should make it easier for anyone who’s had a little too much to drink to get a ride, because they will be able to call Uber directly from the Breathometer smartphone app. The idea is that people will be less likely to get behind the wheel if they have this quick-call option. Uber has been claiming that its service is reducing the number of DUI drivers. A joint Uber/Mothers against Drunk Driving study suggests that the availability of Uber as a transportation alternative helped decrease the number of DUI crashes in a city by 60 percent for drivers under 30. But ProPublica, a public interest journalism website, said that while the drop in accidents may correlate with the presence of Uber in a certain city, there’s no proof that Uber is actually the cause of that drop.
Designing and executing an effective defense against DUI charges (even simple ones) is not intuitive. Fortunately, you can trust the seasoned, highly successful Michael Kraut. Call a DUI lawyer in Los Angeles with nearly two decades of experience.
If police stopped you for Los Angeles DUI, you may be worried and anxious. Contact Harvard Law School educated, ex-prosecutor Michael Kraut for assistance at (323) 464-6453 or online. Our team is located at 6255 Sunset Boulevard, Suite 1480, Los Angeles, California 90028.
Super Bowl Sunday is known to be one of the biggest drinking nights of the year. Many people attending Super Bowl parties will start drinking early in the day. If you plan on celebrating the win or even the loss of your favorite team, here are some of the myths to keep in mind about drinking and driving. Knowing about them might help you avoid starting the year with a drunken driving arrest.
“Don’t kid yourself,” said Birmingham, Michigan-based DUI attorney Patrick Barone. “If you have too much to drink before you drive, you’re putting yourself at risk for being arrested, or even worse — for hurting yourself or someone else on the roads.”
Here is a countdown of common misconceptions about drinking and driving:
I’ll eat a lot while I drink. Super Bowl Sunday is known for its creative and usually high fat finger foods. While having some food in your stomach does help slow alcohol absorption, you will still become intoxicated if you drink enough. I planned ahead and have a designated driver. That’s all well and good, but make sure your designated driving doesn’t get swept up in the game. Before you count on the designated driver to get you both home safely, be sure that your driver is on-board and will abstain completely from drinking. I’ll stop drinking before the game ends. The truth is that alcohol continues to affect you for hours after you’ve put down your last glass. You may actually be MORE intoxicated an hour after you stop drinking than you were when you finished your last cocktail. I only had one glass. While one glass of wine with dinner may not deliver enough alcohol to impair your driving, drinks come in many sizes and strengths. So “just one drink” may have been a glass of wine that is twice a single five-ounce serving of alcohol, or may have three shots of alcohol instead of just one. I’m an excellent drunk driver. No. You only THINK you’re an excellent drunk driver. With as little as 0.02 percent blood alcohol concentration, there may be subtle effects on things like your judgment and vision. By the time you reach the legal limit of 0.08 percent, your reasoning, concentration and perceptions are likely impaired enough to make you unsafe behind the wheel. I don’t feel drunk. Just because you’re not stumbling or slurring your words, that doesn’t mean you’re safe to drive. Long before the visible signs of inebriation set in, your coordination and reflexes are beginning to slow down. I’ll just stick to beer. Great. But that’s still alcohol. It doesn’t matter if you’ve had one shot of liquor, five ounces of wine, or one 12-ounce beer. Alcohol is alcohol. I’ll be fine; I’m not driving far. It doesn’t matter how short the distance is. Drunk is drunk, whether you’re driving 20 miles, or 200 yards. But I blew into this portable breathalyzer thingie and it says I’m OK. Don’t count on gimmicky gadgets to keep you safe. If you bought that breath tester for $100 (or often far less), it’s not nearly accurate enough to measure your blood alcohol content. If it was a gag gift, keep in mind, it’s just that: an entertaining gag gift. The same goes for pills or potions or tricks, such as drinking mouthwash or sucking on a penny, that allege to stop alcohol absorption or skew tests of breath tests in your favor. They just don’t work. Coffee sobers me up. Actually, coffee only helps with drowsiness. You may feel less sleepy, but your judgment and coordination may be impaired. Also, things like exercise and cold showers don’t help. There is nothing that will affect the rate at which your liver processes alcohol.
Barone said that there are few sure-fire ways to be sure you won’t be arrested for driving drunk: Don’t drink or don’t drive. That means staying put, calling a cab or having (or being) a sober designated driver.
“Super Bowl Sunday is a night when we love to get together with friends to enjoy and exciting game and watch funny” Barone said. “An accident or a DUI arrest are not the ways you end a great party.”
I don’t mean to sound like a broken record, but the holidays are not over and law enforcement will be out in full force this New Years to catch drunk drivers who are bringing in the New Year with a little too much to drink.
Throughout Southern California, law enforcement will increase saturation patrols and DUI checkpoints in high traffic areas.
Just as was the case with Christmas, my suggestions are the same:
- Find a designated driver. - Use public transportation. - Plan to stay the night. - Don’t drink.
However, with New Years, the Automobile Club of Southern California is offering its free “Tipsy Tow” service.
From 6pm on Wednesday, December 31st to 6am on New Year’s Day, motorists, bartenders, party hosts, or passengers can call 1-800-400-4AAA for a free ride and tow home for up to seven miles. An Automobile Club contracted roadside tow service will be dispatched to take the would-be driver and their vehicle home.
“Drivers should be aware of the high crash risk from drinking and driving associated with holidays, and we encourage them not to get behind the wheel if they’ve been drinking,” said the Auto Club’s senior traffic safety researcher Steve Bloch.
People often opt to drive home after drinking rather than other transportation option because they don’t want to leave their vehicle behind. Tipsy Tow, however, is unique in that it transports both the driver and their vehicle.
The service does not include rides for passengers. And any person who receives a ride further than the seven miles can expect to pay the rate charged by the tow company.
Don’t bring in the New Year with a California DUI. Be safe and find an alternative ride home.
Everybody makes mistakes at one time or another. One commonly made mistake is driving while under the influence of alcohol, which can cause a DWI charge. This can result in significant time behind bars. However, the growing demand for DWI specialty courts in Minnesota can help many convicted of a DWI from having to spend time in jail for multiple offenses.
The specialty courts designed to process repeat offenders of DWI laws have been shown to reduce recidivism while also saving money for taxpayers, according to a recent study. The two-year study revealed that almost all nine of the specialty DWI courts examined had significantly lower recidivism rates compared to chronic offenders who go through the standard court procedure. This has prompted a call for an expansion of the specialty court program.
The DWI specialty courts are designed to allow certain chronic offenders who qualify to avoid serving time behind bars. The policies of the specialty court program focus more on rehabilitation rather than punishment. Not only does this save money for taxpayers having to house more individuals behind bars, it also keeps the offenders in the programs working and contributing to society. This results in increased tax revenue for the government, which can be spent on other programs and services.
However, in order to take advantage of this specialty DWI court program, one will have to understand the rules in place for qualifying. Alternatively, in some cases in Minnesota, it may be possible to completely avoid a conviction in the first place. On the other hand, each situation will be different. Legal strategies should be analyzed on a case-by-case basis.
Source: startribune.com, "Minnesota's specialty courts for chronic drunken drivers reduce recidivism and costs, national study finds", David Chanen, Nov. 20, 2014
Is it legal to avoid DUI Roadblocks? - Illinois DUI Lawyer Blog @import url(http://www.illinoisduilawyer-blog.com/css/styles.css); window.jQuery || document.write(' Illinois DUI Lawyer Blog Published by Illinois DUI Attorneys :: Gullberg, Box & Worby LLC HomeWebsiteAttorneysPractice Areas Contact Us « Previous | Home | Next » November 13, 2014 |Share Is it legal to avoid DUI Roadblocks? by Gullberg, Box & Worby LLC
Avoiding Roadblocks Often, motorists will seek to avoid roadblocks for a variety of reasons. They may mistake a roadblock for a traffic accident and make a turn or a U-turn prior to reaching the "entrance." Likewise, motorists may recognize the roadblock for what it is-a roadblock-and seek to avoid it for no reason at all. Officers use such "avoidance maneuvers" to justify reasonable suspicion for a traffic stop on the innocent motorist who, for example, made a U-turn instead of continuing forward into the roadblock. Until recently, the simple act of avoiding a roadblock may itself have constituted reasonable suspicion that a criminal offense had been or was about to be committed, thus justifying a stop of the vehicle. People v. Scott, 277 Ill. App. 3d 579, 584 (3rd Dist. 1996). But recently, the Third District Court of Illinois ruled that a motorist can legally avoid a roadblock.
DUI Roadblocks A DUI roadblock (also known as a sobriety checkpoint or a "roadside safety check") is a police position on a roadway set up to stop vehicles for the purpose of cracking down on impaired motorists. They are set up on random roadways, at random times, and on random dates. Roadblocks usually share the same characteristics as traffic accidents: the presence of police and emergency vehicles; several sets of flashing emergency lights; orange traffic cones; and backed-up traffic.
Legality A police officer is entitled to briefly stop a person to investigate if, given the totality of the circumstances, the officer has specific, articulable facts, taken together with rational inferences from the facts, that warrant the intrusion. Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1, 21 (1968) (emphasis added). DUI roadblocks are a "seizure," and they are legal if the intrusion created by the police is limited, i.e., reasonable. In People v. Bartley, the Illinois Supreme Court held that "[t]he [DUI] problem is so serious that . . . we hold that this interest is compelling and will therefore justify some intrusion on the unfettered movement of traffic in order to reduce alcohol-related accidents and deter driving under the influence." 109 Ill. 2d 273, 285 (1985). See also Michigan Dept. of State Police v. Sitz, 496 U.S. 444 (1990). The Bartley Court further held that a DUI roadblock does not violate the Fourth Amendment even where the officer has no individualized suspicion. Bartley, 109 Ill. 2d at 280 (emphasis added).
People of the State of Illinois v. Timmsen Enter People v. Timmsen. In Timmsen, the Appellate Court held that police officers lacked reasonable suspicion to conduct a traffic stop on a motorist who made a legal U-turn prior to reaching the entrance of a DUI roadblock. 2014 IL App. 3d 120481, 14 N.E.3d 1267, 1271 (3rd Dist. 2014). The motorist was driving eastbound on a four-lane highway when he saw a police roadblock ahead of him. The motorist signaled and then made a U-turn at a railroad crossing approximately 50 feet from where officers were stationed. One of the officers stopped the motorist after he made the U-turn and was traveling westbound on the highway. Id. at 1268-1269. The motorist was arrested for driving while his license was suspended. Id. at 1269.
On appeal, the State conceded that the motorist did not violate any traffic laws, but argued nonetheless that the motorist's attempt to avoid the roadblock gave the officer reasonable, articulable suspicion to conduct the stop. Id. at 1269 (emphasis added). The Appellate Court disagreed, finding:
"Although a U-turn may be more uncommon than a turn at an intersection or an exit, the defendant's legal traffic maneuver only raised the suspicion that he was attempting to avoid contact with the police." Id. at 1271.
Actions Taken Which May Justify a Stop There exist, however, actions that when taken by a motorist and coupled with the act of avoiding a roadblock, can create a reasonable suspicion for a traffic stop. The Timmsen Court revisited its decision in People v. Scott, where it gave three examples of such actions: (1) when a vehicle fails to stop at the roadblock; (2) when a vehicle stops just before the roadblock and the driver and passenger change places; and (3) when a vehicle avoids the roadblock in a suspicious manner. Timmsen, 2014 IL App. 3d 120481 (citing People v. Scott, 277 Ill. App. 3d 579, 584 (3rd Dist. 1996)). Notably, the Timmsen Court took care to emphasize that the mere act of avoiding a roadblock is generally not sufficient to constitute reasonable suspicion by itself, and must be coupled with other articulable facts. Timmsen, 2014 IL App. 3d 120481. The Court found that none of the above factors were present: "Looking at the totality of the circumstances, we find there were no factors to suggest that the defendant was doing any more than going about his business. Although the legality of the defendant's traffic maneuver was but one factor to consider, there were no other facts suggesting that it was a high-crime area, nor facts suggesting flight, such as speeding, squealing tires, or spraying gravel." Id. at 1271.
Conclusion The take-away point from Timmsen is that an officer cannot stop a motorist for making a legal U-turn near the entrance of a roadblock even if the officer thinks that the motorist is trying to purposefully avoid the roadblock. Effective DUI lawyers should be able to raise this defense for people stopped and arrested for avoiding a DUI or sobriety roadblock.
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The acronyms DUI, DWI, OMVI and OVI all refer to the same thing: operating a vehicle under the influence of alcohol or drugs. The most commonly used terms are DUI, an acronym for Driving Under the Influence, and DWI, an acronym for Driving While Impaired.
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