Are you drunk? A quick guide to state by state DUI laws
Every year thousands of American’s die on our roads as a result of alcohol or drug impaired drivers. Few activities carry the social stigma of drunk driving, and society has taken significant strides in combating driving under the influence. Here’s a quick primer on what states are doing about alcohol and motor vehicles.
* All states and the District of Columbia have adopted 21 as the legal drinking age.
* All states have more stringent restrictions for drivers under the age of 21, ranging from zero tolerance to a limit of 0.02 BAC.
* A death is considered alcohol-related when any person involved in the accident had some measure of alcohol in his or her blood, even if it was below the legal limit.
* There is an alcohol-related traffic death in the United States every 30 minutes and an injury every 2 minutes.
* In 2006, 17,602 traffic deaths were alcohol-related, up slightly from 17,590 in 2005.
* In 2006, 41 percent of all traffic fatalities were alcohol-related, up from 40 percent in 2005.
* A major factor in the long-term downward trend in alcohol-related fatalities is the enactment, beginning in the 1980s, of state laws designed to deter drunk driving such as:
- Requiring persons to be at least 21 years old before they can purchase alcohol
- Mandatory drivers license revocation when a driver’s BAC level is above the state’s legal limit
- Lowering the legal BAC level to 0.08
- Prohibiting open containers of alcoholic beverages in motor vehicles
- Increasing measures to prevent underage drivers from obtaining alcohol
- Canceling the vehicle registration of drivers who have had their licenses suspended or revoked due to alcohol-related offenses
- Instituting sobriety checkpoints
Here is a breakdown of how states treat drunk driving violations:
| State | Admin Review - Susp | Mand. 90 day review -Susp | Open Container | Prelim breath test | DUI plea bargaining prohibited |
| Alabama | X | X | X | ||
| Alaska | X | X | X (4) | X | |
| Arizona | X | X | X | X | X |
| Arkansas | X | X | X | ||
| California | X | X | X | X | X |
| Colorado | X | X | X | X | X |
| Connecticut | X | X | |||
| Delaware | X | X | X | ||
| D.C. | X | X | X | X | |
| Florida | X | X | X | X | X (5) |
| Georgia | X | X | X | ||
| Hawaii | X | X | X | X (5) | |
| Idaho | X | X | X | ||
| Illinois | X | X | X | X | |
| Indiana | X | X | X | X (5) | |
| Iowa | X | X | X | X | |
| Kansas | X | X (4) | X | X | |
| Kentucky | X | X | X (5) | ||
| Louisiana | X | X | X | ||
| Maine | X | X | X | ||
| Maryland | X | X | X | ||
| Massachusetts | X | X | X | ||
| Michigan | X | X | X (5) | ||
| Minnesota | X | X | X | X | |
| Mississippi | X | X | X | X | |
| Missouri | X | X | |||
| Montana | X | X | |||
| Nebraska | X | X | X | X | |
| Nevada | X | X | X | X | X |
| New Hampshire | X | X | X | X | |
| New Jersey | X | X (6) | |||
| New Mexico | X | X | X | X (5) | |
| New York | (7) | X | X | X | |
| North Carolina | X | X | X (5) | ||
| North Dakota | X | X | X | X | |
| Ohio | X | X | X | ||
| Oklahoma | X | X | X (4) | ||
| Oregon | X | X | X | X | |
| Pennsylvania | X | X | X (5) | ||
| Rhode Island | X (4) | X | |||
| South Carolina | X | ||||
| South Dakota | X | X | |||
| Tennessee | X (4) | ||||
| Texas | X | X | X | ||
| Utah | X | X | X | X (5) | |
| Vermont | X | X | X | X | |
| Virginia | X | X | |||
| Washington | X | X | X | ||
| West Virginia | X | X | X | ||
| Wisconsin | X | X | X | X | |
| Wyoming | X | X | X (4) | X |
(1) On-the-spot drivers license suspension or revocation if BAC is over the legal limit or the driver refuses to take a BAC test.
(2) Mandatory penalty for violation of the implied consent law, which means that drivers who refuse to take a breath alcohol test when stopped or arrested for drunk driving will have their license revoked or suspended.
(3) Prohibits unsealed alcohol containers in motor vehicle passenger compartments for all occupants. Arresting officer not required to witness consumption.
(4) Applies only to the driver.
(5) With limitations or conditions.
(6) Not specifically for drunk driving; Attorney General has established a no plea bargain policy.
(7) Administrative license suspension lasts until prosecution is complete.
Source: U.S. Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration; Insurance Institute for Highway Safety; Property Casualty Insurers Association of America; Insurance Information Institute.
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