Legally, the age at which one can start
drinking in the United States is 21, but there is an overwhelming amount of research
and studies which show that the majority of people actually start drinking
alcohol much before the age of 21. Many people believe America’s age of 21 is
asinine and ridiculous.
When a person is still growing and their
maturity is still developing, drinking can lead to some seriously dangerous
practices such as binge drinking and\or drinking and driving. This is true but
as just stated, young people are already drinking. The age 21 threshold is
illogical. Many people believe age 19 is more suitable and sensible.
In order to mitigate the risks of
underage drinking and driving, the federal government has, in recent years gone
by, passed a law which applies to all fifty states across the nation and
demands that any underage person found to be driving while having a blood
alcohol limit of 0.02% or over have their licenses immediately suspended.
States that fail to comply with this ruling and enforce it on their citizens
will risk losing federal highway money say criminal defense lawyers.
If you have been charge with a crime you
need a criminal defense lawyer. You can find some of the best right here: Criminal-Defense.USAttorneys.com. This website has
lawyers in all types of fields all over the country. This type of access did
not exist a century ago but now it does and our Founding Fathers would be proud
of this website. Tyranny needs to be put in check.
Zero
tolerance laws throughout America for underage DUI
For adults, there is some leeway in
driving under the influence laws since they are only said to be technically
driving under the influence if their blood alcohol content happens to be over
0.08% BAC (in most states). When it comes to persons under the age of 21
though, even the slightest bit of alcohol in the blood is not entertained and
the driver will be charged with underage DUI even if his or her blood alcohol
is as low as 0.02% BAC.
Seth, Evan, and Fogell in Superbad knew
all about this. They chose to beat the system to buy alcohol but they never
drove drunk. The police (Officer Slater and Michaels) did that but of course
everyone knew that was preposterous but still hilarious. Superbad poked fun at
America’s laws but did it with class and humor.
According to criminal defense attorneys,
another group of people that are subjected to lowered thresholds are commercial
drivers, for very obvious purposes, the limit for driving for commercial
drivers in most states is 0.04% which is only half of the limit for
non-commercial, adult drivers.
The
legal consequences of underage DUI
Driving under the influence laws vary
from state to state, and so the exact punishment may also slightly differ
depending on which state you live in. However, for the most part, these are the
punishments levied on an underage driver convicted of driving under the
influence.
Suspension of license is one of the
common punishments. Thanks to the federal law, irrespective of which state the
crime is committed in, an underage DUI conviction will most certainly result in
the license suspension. The length of the suspension itself can vary
from state to state. Underage drivers that refuse to submit to sobriety testing
will also have their license suspended.
Other penalties for underage DUI include
jail time in a juvenile facility, completion of alcohol and drug counselling
programs, completion of driving safety classes, restitution for any property
damages caused, installation of ignition interlock devices on all of the
perpetrator’s vehicles, community service, and fines.
If
you have been wrongfully charged with underage DUI or any other crime,
as it so happens quite often, we encourage you to consult with an appoint an
experienced criminal defense lawyer as quickly as time permits so that you can
get started on challenging your charges, defending yourself, and actually
beating your case.
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