3 things you must know about Driving While Impaired (DWI)

Raleigh Lawyers for DWI Defense

In order to be charged with DWI, under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 20-138.1, a person must be caught: Operating a motor vehicle on a public street, highway, or public vehicular area with a Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) of 0.08% or above. OR Operating a motor vehicle while alcohol, drugs, or a combination of drugs and alcohol impair your mental and/or physical abilities, even though your Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) does NOT rise to 0.08%. OR Operating a commercial motor vehicle on a public street, highway, or public vehicular area with a Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) of 0.04% or above. In simpler terms - to convict you of Driving While Impaired, the prosecutor must prove that you were: 1st Operating a Motor Vehicle, 2nd On a Public Vehicular Area, 3rd While Impaired.

CAN I GET A DWI FOR SLEEPING IN MY CAR? Yes.

Operating means more than driving a car. It includes being seated in the driver's seat of a parked vehicle with a key in the ignition. The engine does not even have to be running as long as the officer finds some evidence that you recently drove the vehicle, like a warm hood. If you are going to sleep in your car, be sure the key is out of the ignition, the engine is off and you are not seated in the driver's seat. Motor Vehicle means more than a car. It includes almost all mechanically driven vehicles: cars, trucks, farm equipment, riding lawn mowers, golf carts . . . It can even include bicycles and wheel chairs if the operator has no disability requiring the use of a wheel chair.

CAN I GET A DWI FOR DRIVING ON PRIVATE PROPERTY? Yes.

Public Vehicular Area means more than a public street and bordering shoulder. It includes private streets and parking lots that are available for public use. The parking lots at shopping malls, grocery stores, gas stations and most businesses are public vehicular areas. Even gated private streets may be public vehicular areas if the owner designates the private street as a public vehicular area for law enforcement purposes.

DOES A BLOOD ALCOHOL LEVEL OF 0.08% MEAN I WAS IMPAIRED? Maybe?

While Impaired means two things in North Carolina:

• Appreciable Impairment or
• Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) of 0.08% or greater.

Appreciable Impairment means your physical coordination or mental ability was noticeably affected by alcohol, drugs or prescription medication. To prove your impairment, the officer will ask you to perform some field sobriety tests like walking a line or standing on one leg. In my experience, most people cannot perform these tests correctly under the best conditions. What is the chance you can perform these tests correctly on an uneven surface, in the dark, late at night, when you are tired and nervous about being stopped by the police? All of these roadside tests are VOLUNTARY. That means DO NOT TAKE THESE TESTS. Tell the officer no thank you. Refusing these tests means you are thinking clearly enough to know your legal rights. No officer, judge or prosecutor would perform these roadside sobriety tests so you shouldn't either. Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) - In North Carolina, your first trial is before a judge and your second is with a jury. Some judges and most juries will find impairment with a BAC of 0.08% or greater. Most judges will find impairment with a BAC greater than 0.10%. From 0.08% to 0.10%, many judges will balance the evidence of appreciable impairment and sobriety before finding impairment. Refusing the officer's field sobriety tests reduces the evidence of appreciable impairment and helps the judge balance these close cases in your favor. CALL YOUR RALEIGH DWI LAWYER!