Driving under the influence

After a long day at work there can be nothing better than dropping into the pub and enjoying a nice refreshing pint with your colleagues. One drink turns into two and two into three and so on. This could lead to you driving with excess alcohol in your system. An often overlooked fact is when you wake up after a night out with alcohol still being expelled from your system. If you have to drive there is a strong chance you may still be over the limit. Being caught whilst under the influence can have very serious consequences and if this happens to you, we can help.

PUNISHMENT:

What are the punishments for driving with excess alcohol? You could be facing a maximum penalty of six months in prison and a fine of up to £5,000 and a minimum 12 months driving ban. Causing death by drink driving carries a maximum sentence of 14 years in prison and a minimum two years driving ban plus taking an extended driving test before being able to drive again. Proper legal representation is vital.

THE LEGAL FACTS:

Why is it illegal to drive with an excess of alcohol in your system? When you drink alcohol, you absorb it into your bloodstream. When this happens your actions become obstructed and your reactions slow down. This will, in turn, cause your mental and driving skills to be impaired.

What is the drink driving limit?
You are over the limit if there is:

What happens if I am pulled over at roadside for drink driving and excess alcohol?
The officer who pulls you over may decide on their own opinion whether you are over the drink driving limit and whether to arrest you or not. Some may use a breath test which may show whether you are over the limit but it is not fundamental to them arresting you. If the police officer does arrest you, they will take you to the police station for further tests before releasing or charging you.

What will happen at the police station?
Most people who are charged with drink related driving offences are charged with driving or attempting to drive after consuming so much alcohol that the proportion of it in his or her breath, blood or urine exceeds the prescribed limit under section 5 Road Traffic Act 1988. It is always important to remember that if you have found yourself in a custody suite, you should try and recall and record as much detail of what has been done and said as possible. If the custody staff and Intoxilyzer operator have not completed the procedure correctly it may lead to the court not proceeding with the conviction. Most straightforward excess alcohol convictions follow the arrested person providing a sample of breath on a government approved device. The breathalysers in police stations are usually either the Lion Intoxilyzer 6000 or the Intoximeter ECIR. Once the sample has been provided, if it is above the legal limit of 35 microgrammes (mgs) the Crown will be seeking a conviction under section 5 RTA 1988. If the reading is under 40mgs the Crown Prosecution Service will usually not proceed with the charge.

Will the police ask me for Blood or Urine samples?
If the reading is 50mgs or below the Intoxilyzer operator will, if following the procedure correctly, explain that you have the right to have your specimen replaced with blood or urine. The officer should not do anything to persuade or dissuade you in this decision. If you do decide to have the specimen replaced then it will be for the officer to decide whether the replacement be of blood or urine.

If the officer decides to take blood he will then call a doctor or health care professional to take the specimen. Your consent must always be sought and given before a specimen can be taken. This specimen should be split into two and you must be offered your own sample so you can have it examined by your own toxicologist. The other sample should be sealed and then sent to the police toxicologist.

Typically you will be bailed to re-attend at a date when the sample has been examined. The legal limit in blood is 80mgs. Two samples taken at the same time are often not exactly the same. Moreover when the samples are examined, to account for a margin of error a further 6mgs is deducted from the reading. If this remains at over 80mgs the police will proceed with a charge. The Crown Prosecution Service will usually proceed with a charge even if it is only 81mgs.

If the officer decides to take a urine specimen then you should be taken by a same gender officer to a room to provide a sample of urine. The officer should use an approved testing kit and the first sample provided should be discarded. You will be asked to provide a second sample which is the sample that will be used for analysis. As with blood, this sample should be split in two and you must be offered your own sample to be examined by your own expert. The other sample should be sealed and then sent to the police laboratories. Typically you will be bailed to re-attend at a date when the sample has been examined. The legal limit in urine is 107mgs.

It should be noted that in certain circumstances such as lack of a suitable Intoxilyzer machine or medical reasons the officer can skip the use of the Intoxilyzer machine and go straight to the option of blood or urine.

What if the procedure is carried out at the hospital?
The procedure that the police have to follow at the hospital is very different from that at the police station and is quite complex. There is, of course, no Intoxilyzer machine at the hospital and therefore the procedure involves roadside breath kits, blood and urine. Issues of lucidity and consciousness are important, especially in fail to provide cases. Two doctors are involved in the process and consent from the doctor whose care you are under is an essential element. Due to the complexity an expert review of the MG/DD/C (the pro forma completed by the police) would be the best starting point in a case such as this to assess if the procedure has been completed adequately.