Play It Safe On New Year’s Eve

Various people have various reasons for choosing to do or not doing certain actions including whether they choose to drive under the influence of alcohol.  Some people choose not to drink and drive because of its moral implications. Some choose not drive after drinking because they are terrified of hurting themselves or others. Others choose to drive unimpaired because of the legal implications. Most probably choose not to drive after drinking for all of the above.

Since my article usually gets published on Monday mornings (Tuesday mornings in some areas), I thought I would take the opportunity to appeal to your rational side in plenty of time before the effects of alcohol take over on New Year’s Eve. This way you can crunch the numbers yourself and plan ahead. Hopefully this will prevent the age-old irrational thought-process after alcohol has taken over your brain that usually sounds something like this: “It is a short drive, I’ll be fine.”

Let’s be honest with ourselves. Driving drunk is extremely dangerous. Since most people do not necessarily contemplate the dangerous nature of driving drunk, the Florida Legislature has tried to reduce/eliminate drunk driving by penalizing you.

The Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles has summarized DUI penalties forfirst, second, third, and fourth offenses. Most of the statutes dealing with DUI penalties are in section 316.193, Florida Statutes, with additional provisions related to the status of your driver’s license in chapter 322, Florida Statutes.

What Happens During a 1^st DUI?

Since almost everyone convicted of a DUI at least once was required to take a class outlining further penalties for additional violations, let’s concentrate on first offenses. For first offenses, you face the possibility of the following penalties:

• FINE:  $500 to $1,000 if Blood-Alcohol Content (BAC) between .08 and .15 and $1,000 to $2,000 if BAC above .15.
• COMMUNITY SERVICE:  Mandatory 50 hours or $10 per hour
• PROBATION:  Can receive up to one year
• IMPRISONMENT:  Up to six months for BAC between .08 and .15 and up to nine months for BAC above .15.
• IMPOUND:  Vehicle impounded for 10 days unless there is no other    transportation for your family (you already lost your license).
• OVERNIGHT STAY AT THE COUNTY JAIL INN AND SUITES:  Until completely sober.
• CAUSING INJURY TO PROPERTY OR PERSONS:  For property damage and non-serious injury, imprisonment up to one year all. At the other extreme, vehicular homicide that could result in 30 years in prison. 
• PEOPLE UNDER 21:  Penalties are implemented with only a .02 BAC.

 A Better Investment of Your Money

Now let’s start putting these penalties in perspective. Last night at a holiday party, one person had a grey-goose martini, dry.  The average martini glass holds five to six ounces of liquid. I can tell you that the glass was full as the bartender seemed to be very gracious. Let us assume three ounces were alcohol (I am sure it was a lot more).  That would be the equivalent of two servings of alcohol in one glass. 

Based on this handy-dandy calculator by the University of Oklahoma Police Department, the specific person I am talking about would have a BAC of at least .09 if she left after the one-hour dinner. The martini cost her $9. 

Let us assume that she didn’t drive home (which she didn’t, her husband did).  Rather, she took a cab the 10 miles she lived from the party.  At $1.50 a mile, that would have cost her an additional $15.  Perhaps she couldn’t afford to leave her car and chose to have it towed instead. That may have cost her $100.  Worst-case scenario, she spent $109 for her evening.  Even if she decided to really “get her party hat dirty” and drank substantially more, the entire evening probably would not have cost her more than $200 even in extreme circumstances. 

Call me a crazy business person, but I would rather spend $200 for an incredible hangover where I wake up safe at home with no injuries to anyone rather than at the County Jail Inn and Suites facing a minimum $500 fine, court costs, community service, car impound, DUI classes, and license suspension. I have heard that customer service at the County Jail Inn and Suites has not yet met the five-star standards of some other overnight establishments.

Think about it, if you invest $200 in Wall Street, the most it will cost you is $200.  For a DUI, you could spend $9 on a drink and it could easily cost you thousands more than you originally invested in your night out (Occupy Safe Driving Street anyone?).

Consider the Alternatives

There are some easy ways to stay safe while still having fun.  Some are obvious:  Appoint a designated driver (who does not consume alcohol on their shift at all) or take a taxi. 

There are some other alternatives you may not have known about and may want to think about. First, AAA has a program called Tow to Go that operates on most holidays. AAA will tow your car and take you home for free regardless of whether you are a member or not. You can also make appointments with a local towing company and have them meet you at a specific time and place. I have also seen some law firms and funeral homes have programs that will pay for your taxi expenses on major holidays. 

Nevertheless, there are options. Plan ahead and get the words, “It’s only a few miles, I’ll be fine” out of your head. Be safe and have fun! 

About this column: Each week, we discuss relevant legal issues in your community; the latest legal developments that affect those communities; or answer questions directly from Patch readers. This column is for you, and therefore your comments and questions are highly encouraged. Please send specific legal questions to jts@simonslawfirm.com or www.simonslawfirm.com for potential publication. This column is for informational purposes only. Nothing herein should be construed as giving legal advice to the reader, Patch.com, or any other person or entity. This is not a solicitation for business J.T. Simons, P.A., attempts to provide the most recent and accurate information available. However, nothing herein should be construed as a formal legal opinion that can be relied on for any purpose. In other words, absolutely nothing herein should be construed as giving you any legal advice. Please contact an attorney to verify the validity and/or applicability of any legal issue or comment contained herein. Any questions or comments submitted in response to any column, or any communication made to J.T. Simons, P.A. concerning this column, shall not create an attorney-client relationship.