OT: Morality Police- Buzzed Driving
Mate27
TUSCL’s #1 Soothsayer!
Well I admit to having a couple drinks at the club before driving home, and then I see highway signs that read "buzzed driving is impaired driving"!
Thoughts on my behavior? Does this mean I fit into Rickyboy Dugan territory? I know I am well below the 0.08 BAC level after leaving the club. Usually I have two-four drinks, and I'm about 200 lbs. If I have two drinks, it is finished in about an hour. Four drinks will be closer to two hours, and I'm figuring my body metabolizes close to one drink an hour.
If I am in RBD territory as a consensus then from now on it will be one drink only with O'Douls or a water, but the club gets about $10 a drink from me so money saved for more lappers.
Thoughts on my behavior? Does this mean I fit into Rickyboy Dugan territory? I know I am well below the 0.08 BAC level after leaving the club. Usually I have two-four drinks, and I'm about 200 lbs. If I have two drinks, it is finished in about an hour. Four drinks will be closer to two hours, and I'm figuring my body metabolizes close to one drink an hour.
If I am in RBD territory as a consensus then from now on it will be one drink only with O'Douls or a water, but the club gets about $10 a drink from me so money saved for more lappers.
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16 comments
It amazes me that, after almost 20,000 years of documented human history drinking fermented and distilled booze, people in this country actually listen to the absurd rule freaks who still demand that everyone else abstain while they drink to their heart's content before getting into their limo for their ride home!
I believe the rule of thumb is subtract one drink every two hours.
If you got pulled over after 2 drinks you're unlikely to face any repercussions. Unless you're under 21 where the rules are tougher.
As far as buzzed driving, I assume if you're buzzed, you are impaired to some degree. Maybe you're still careful and obeying speed and other traffic laws, but your judgment still isn't at 100%. Shit can still happen.
Here's a personal note. Twenty years ago I was rear ended by a buzzed driver. The guy had left work, grabbed a couple of beers and headed home. It was near Christmas and we were navigating a busy road by a mall. The guy took his eyes off the road for a moment, then slammed his work van into the back of my little college Civic. There was no damage to the van, but my car folded up like an accordion. He blew under an .08. I have permanent neck and back problems. He paid a small fine, did three days at DUI camp and received a 6-month license suspension (with driving permitted for work). I spent the next year going to a neurologist and received a small settlement that has long since vanished to pay for a variety of medical treatments. To this day I wish the guy hadn't been buzzed driving. Please don't take the risk!!!
I rarely drink too much but occasionally strippers will get me too high. If that happens I just stay itc long enough for it to mostly wear off. To tell if I'm ok to drive I ask a stripper. If no strippers are available, I do field sobriety tests on myself. Stand on one foot, walk a straight line, touch my nose. If I can mostly pass then I go.
Since you mentioned field sobriety tests, I have a question. I sometimes watch COPS and see the police administer those tests. I rarely, rarely ever drink at clubs. But I'm also fat and very uncoordinated. I doubt if I could pass those tests being stone cold sober. Can I refuse a field sobriety test and ask for a blood or breathalyzer test instead?
You are correct. I've tried some of those tests perfectly sober and not done it well. I've heard one should never submit to a field test. Seems to me almost an admission of guilt.
I used to work and club in the Belden Village area of Canton. At the time it was the top spot in the state for DUI arrest and convictions. For a small area, it garnered more DUIs than large metropolitan areas like Cleveland, Columbus and Cincinnati. It was an upscale shopping area lots of places to eat and drink. The state police and local cops picked up people from dusk until well after the bars closed. I knew all sorts of people who were busted. I had a co-worker popped in front of me after we left a bar. I had nothing. He had two Bud Lights and two Jack and cokes over a four hour period. He was under .08. He was an athletic guy and thought he passed the field sobriety test. The cop disagreed and arrested him. I spent the six months accompanying him to court dates as a witness. He paid thousands of dollars to a lawyer he grew up with who specialized in DUIs. It still did no good and he was found guilty. When he went to DUI camp for three days, he faced the same harsh truth as a lot of other people. Judges and juries didn't care if you claimed you were fine and your BAC was under .08. If the cop said you were impaired, you were done. The district attorney's office put up a stone wall to anyone looking to plead down a DUI charge. They knew they could win.
Now, this isn't going to be the case everywhere. But why take the chance? There's way too many people out there who believe it's always "someone else" who gets busted for a DUI and somehow they'll get off if they hire the right lawyer. It doesn't work that way. Plenty of people have played that game and lost.
I think .08% is stupidly low, but this is a case of politics trumping policy. After all, who is going to campaign to raise the legal limit?
Interesting question. As a practical matter yes you can. Just refuse to do the field sobriety tests (they can't force you), and the next thing the cop will do is a breathalyzer. But it would not be a smart choice. Even if you pass the breathalyzer and aren't drunk, the cop may think you are high on drugs since you refused the sobriety tests. If so, they might arrest you and take you in for a blood test. This is especially true if they claimed you were driving erratically. Best to do the tests, and ask for the fat and uncoordinated motorist version.