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August 28, 2008
Drunk-Driving
             
 
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DUI/DWI Terms and Definitions

 
 

Alcoholism
Alcoholism, also known as “alcohol dependence,” Includes four symptoms: Craving: A strong need, or compulsion, to drink. Loss of control: The inability to limit one’s drinking on any given occasion. Physical dependence: Withdrawal symptoms, such as nausea, sweating, shakiness, and anxiety, occur when alcohol use is stopped after a period of heavy drinking. Tolerance: The need to drink greater amounts of alcohol in order to “get high.”

Reasonable suspicion
The officer must have what is legally termed a "reasonable suspicion," based on something unusual that is actually observed about the way a person is driving. This is a very low standard and it can be satisfied by virtually anything which appears out of the ordinary and that might be a sign of a driver being under the influence. In addition, during holiday seasons, police officers typically set up field sobriety checkpoints where they routinely stop every driver who passes through the checkpoint.

Ignition Interlock Devices
The courts may require first and repeat DUI offenders to use Ignition Interlock Devices. To start the vehicle, the driver must blow into the device. The vehicle will not start if the driver's blood alcohol content exceeds 0.05%.

Administrative License Revocation (ALR)
Simply put, the DMV automatically revokes your license when you are arrested for DUI as part of its duty to regulate drivers’ licenses. (The court may also take your license, and may also fine or jail you.)

Sleep Deprivation
Drowsy driving is greatly under reported because there is no test for it, as there is for intoxication, no clear way to identify it, and many states don't even have a code for it on their vehicle accident reporting forms.

Public Intoxication
Public intoxication is the appearance of a person who is under the influence of drugs or alcohol in a place open to the general public. In most American jurisdictions, public intoxication is considered a misdemeanor

Field Sobriety Tests
Field Sobriety Tests sometimes referred to by the acronym FSTs, are tests administered by the police to purportedly assess intoxication.

Legal State Limits
Laws for DWI and DUI vary from state-to-state. There is a chart listing state blood alcohol limits, license suspension, ignition interlock and forfeiture penalties.

Controlled Substances
Health and other public concerns have generated detailed Federal and state regulation of the sale and possession of alcoholic beverages, tobacco products, and a wide range of other "controlled substances."

Failed Sobriety Test
A sobriety test is a method of determining whether a person is intoxicated. Among the common sobriety tests are coordination tests and the use of mechanical devices to measure the blood alcohol content of a person’s breath sample.


Contact a DUI Lawyer in Boston now!

 

 
Did You Know?    
 
 
Your operator’s license and/or operating privileges can be revoked under the Administrative License Revocation (ALR)
Depending on the state, this law authorizes law enforcement to immediately confiscate a driver’s license as a result of a Driving Under the Influence (DUI) arrest. Drivers, who are eligible, may receive a temporary license for 30 days. Drivers who refuse the test will be revoked for a one (1) year time period. Drivers who fail the test will be revoked for 90 days - for first offense, or for one (1) year for any subsequent offense within a 12 year time period.

 


  Newsroom  
 


News about DUI & Drunk Driving cases in Boston and nationwide:

Cops Office Releases Study On Drunk Driving
Washington, DC - In addition to alcohol impairment being the greatest factor in traffic fatalities, the number of deaths resulting from alcohol-rel...
Read more >


Ralph Hingson Joins NIAAA
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) Director Ting-Kai Li, M.D., announced...
Read more >


National Drunk and Drugged Driving (3D) Prevention Month
"Last year in Illinois, 614 people were killed as a result of alcohol related crashes," said ISP Director Sam W. Nolen. "Through strict enforcement...
Read more >


More DUI Drunk Driving News >

 
 

Drunk Driving Terms

 


Today's Terms

Impairment

Definition:
Well known is the fact that the consumption of alcohol can cause impairment. Perhaps less recognized is that fact that impairment rises gradually at lower levels but dramatically at higher levels of blood alcohol concentration (BAC).

Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus (HGN)

Definition:
Horizontal gaze nystagmus is a naturally occurring involuntary jerking of the eyeballs as they gaze side to side. It is theorized that when a person is impaired by alcohol, the nystagmus (the jerking of the eyeballs) is magnified or pronounced.

Vehicular Homicide

Definition:
Vehicular homicide is the killing of another person by one’s unlawful or negligent operation of a motor vehicle.

More OUI.com Terms >

 

DUI/DWI Resources

 


Search Drunk Driving resources in our resource center:

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DUI/DWI Hot Topics

 
Topics Related to DUI/DWI:

  • Blood Alcohol Content (BAC)
  • Breathalyzer Test
  • Failed Sobriety Test
  • Legal State BAC Limits

More DUI/DWI Topics >

Boston Drunk-Driving Attorney

 
If you live in the following cities and need legal help you should contact our Attorney as soon as possible:

  • Amherst
  • Attleboro
  • Beverly
  • Boston
  • Brighton
  • Brockton
  • Chelsea
  • Everett
  • Fitchburg
  • Framingham
  • Holyoke
  • Lawrence
  • Leominster
  • Lynn
  • Malden
  • Marlborough
  • Medford
  • Methuen
  • New Bedford
  • Peabody
  • Pittsfield
  • Plymouth
  • Quincy
  • Revere
  • Salem
  • Taunton
  • Westfield
  • Woburn
  Need to find a DUI Lawyer Nationwide? Visit DrunkDrivingLawyers.com
 


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