DUI, or Driving under the Influence of Alcohol is an extremely serious offense. Driving under the influence (DUI) also sometimes refer to as DWI or Driving While Intoxicated means operating a motor vehicle after consuming alcohol that have impaired a person’s mental or motor skills.

All fifty states along with the District of Columbia have per se laws outlining it as a crime to operate a motor vehicle with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) at or above a restricted level, which is currently 0.08 percent (0.08 g alcohol per 100 ml blood).

If convicted of alcohol-impaired driving, license suspension or revocation traditionally follows. When a driver fails or refuses to take a chemical test, under the administrative license suspension procedure, licenses are taken prior to conviction. Administrative license suspension laws are in place in forty one states along with the District of Columbia.

Federal laws take an extremely serious view of DUI. A DUI can be convicted as a misdemeanor or a felony depending on a number of factors, such as the number of offenses, the blood alcohol level documented, and whether any other individual was injured during the offense.

In each state zero tolerance laws are in effect, which applies to all drivers including those under the age of twenty one. Each state imposed different penalties, but it is possible to anyone under twenty one years of age to bear the same penalties as an adult.

Implied consent law is also in place in all states. Implied consent law refers to the individual’s impliedly consenting to submit to BAC and field sobriety tests when the said individual obtained his/her driver’s license. Serious consequences including revocation of driver’s license confronts those who refuse.

Punishments for DUI convictions vary among jurisdictions. Penalties often include fines, alcohol classes, community service, and license suspension. In cases where a driver’s BAC is over .15 most states impose higher penalties. They may be required to serve a jail sentence, pay larger fines, and have devices installed in their vehicles that measure the driver’s BAC prior to the vehicle may be turned on.

In forty five states offenders are permitted to drive only if their vehicles have been equipped with ignition interlocks. Multiple offenders may forfeit vehicles that are driven while impaired by alcohol in thirty states. Forty-three states along with the District of Columbia have laws prohibiting the driver, passengers or both from having an open container of alcohol in the passenger compartment of a vehicle.