driving under influence
Being arrested for Driving Under the Influence (DUI)
Independent Research Project
Driving under the influence is the act of driving a vehicle with blood levels of alcohol in excess of a legal limit. Legal limits may vary or change. As of August 1st 2010 Ontario enforced a new law which states that all drivers aged 21 and under must have a BAC (blood alcohol concentration) of zero. For drivers aged 22 and higher, there is a “warn range” of blood alcohol concentration which is from 0.05-0.08%. Drivers who register this BAC lose their license at roadside for 3, 7 or 30 days. Consequences also get tougher for repeat occurrences. If you drive impaired and your BAC is above 0.08%, or you fail or refuse to comply with alcohol or drug testing, you can be convicted under the criminal code and Ontario’s Highway Traffic Act.
But how does a driver get pulled over by a police officer in the first place? Before a police officer can pull over and conduct a traffic stop on a driver they must have a probable cause that the driver did or is committing a traffic violation. Next, if the officer suspects that the driver is intoxicated he can request that the driver perform what is known as the field sobriety test. The purpose of the test is to detect possible impairment and establish a probable cause for arrest. The test can be carried out through various procedures. It can be a walk and turn test, standing on one leg test or the rhomberg balance test, where the driver is to close their eyes while standing straight and tilting their head back for 30 seconds. The officer will be looking for obvious signs of difficulty from the suspect such a loss of balance, inability to stand still, body and eyelid tremors, swaying and muscle tension. If the police officer gathers enough evidence to give the driver probable cause to arrest a suspect for suspicion of driving under the influence then the suspect will be read his miranda rights and taken to the police station. At the police
Independent Research Project
Driving under the influence is the act of driving a vehicle with blood levels of alcohol in excess of a legal limit. Legal limits may vary or change. As of August 1st 2010 Ontario enforced a new law which states that all drivers aged 21 and under must have a BAC (blood alcohol concentration) of zero. For drivers aged 22 and higher, there is a “warn range” of blood alcohol concentration which is from 0.05-0.08%. Drivers who register this BAC lose their license at roadside for 3, 7 or 30 days. Consequences also get tougher for repeat occurrences. If you drive impaired and your BAC is above 0.08%, or you fail or refuse to comply with alcohol or drug testing, you can be convicted under the criminal code and Ontario’s Highway Traffic Act.
But how does a driver get pulled over by a police officer in the first place? Before a police officer can pull over and conduct a traffic stop on a driver they must have a probable cause that the driver did or is committing a traffic violation. Next, if the officer suspects that the driver is intoxicated he can request that the driver perform what is known as the field sobriety test. The purpose of the test is to detect possible impairment and establish a probable cause for arrest. The test can be carried out through various procedures. It can be a walk and turn test, standing on one leg test or the rhomberg balance test, where the driver is to close their eyes while standing straight and tilting their head back for 30 seconds. The officer will be looking for obvious signs of difficulty from the suspect such a loss of balance, inability to stand still, body and eyelid tremors, swaying and muscle tension. If the police officer gathers enough evidence to give the driver probable cause to arrest a suspect for suspicion of driving under the influence then the suspect will be read his miranda rights and taken to the police station. At the police