A man with nine DUI offenses under his belt was pulled over in another state for the tenth time. When the police asked him about the alcohol on his breath, his response was to blame the beer battered fish he had eaten. While the officer believed he had eaten beer battered fish, he did not accept that as the reason why there was alcohol on his breath. The man ended up blowing over his legal limit and was arrested for his 10th Driving Under the Influence Offense and Driving on a Revoked License.
Drunk Driving Offenses in Larimer County
There are three different charges related to drinking and driving in Larimer, Grand and Boulder County: Driving While Ability Impaired (DWAI), Driving Under the Influence (DUI), and Driving with Excessive Blood Alcohol Content (DUI Per Se).
Driving While Ability Impaired or alcohol impaired is defined by Colorado law as:
driving a motor vehicle or vehicle when a person has consumed alcohol or one or more drugs, or a combination of both alcohol and one or more drugs, that affects the person to the slightest degree so that the person is less able than the person ordinarily would have been, either mentally or physically, or both mentally and physically, to exercise clear judgment, sufficient physical control, or due care in the safe operation of a vehicle.
It is charged:
When a person’s BAC is greater than .05 but less than .08.
Driving Under the Influence or drunk driving is defined by Colorado law as:
driving a motor vehicle or vehicle when a person has consumed alcohol or one or more drugs, or a combination of alcohol and one or more drugs, that affects the person to a degree that the person is substantially incapable, either mentally or physically, or both mentally and physically, to exercise clear judgment, sufficient physical control, or due care in the safe operation of a vehicle.
It is charged:
When a person’s BAC is .08 or greater.
Driving with Excessive Blood Alcohol Content or DUI Per Se is defined by Colorado law as:
It is a misdemeanor for any person to drive a motor vehicle or vehicle when the person’s BAC is 0.08 or more at the time of driving or within two hours after driving. During a trial, if the state’s evidence raises the issue, or if a defendant presents some credible evidence, that the defendant consumed alcohol between the time that the defendant stopped driving and the time that testing occurred, such issue shall be an affirmative defense, and the prosecution must establish beyond a reasonable doubt that the minimum 0.08 blood or breath alcohol content required was reached as a result of alcohol consumed by the defendant before the defendant stopped driving.
It is charged:
When a person’s BAC is .08 or greater
[pullquote align=”center” textalign=”center” width=”90%”]The only difference in these three definitions is the degree to which a person is affected by the consumed alcohol or drugs.[/pullquote]
So, if you are contacted by police concerning a drinking and driving traffic offense in Fort Collins, Loveland, or Estes Park, be smart, exercise your right to remain silent, and call the O’Malley Law Office today at (970) 658-0007 for a free consultation. Together, we can protect your future.
