According to statistics from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), DUI accident fatalities increased from 9,865 in 2011 to 10,322 in 2013. The NHTSA reported that the majority of DUI accidents with fatalities involved drivers whose blood alcohol concentration (BAC) was 0.15 percent or higher, or almost twice the legal limit. A 2006 study by the NHTSA estimated that there is one drunk driving fatality in the United States every 30 minutes.
Georgia's Driving Under the Influence Laws are complex. Georgia DUI injury attorney Shane Smith can sort through the intermingled laws that potentially create complications in a DUI case.
A 19-year-old Georgia woman was arrested after a police officer noticed she was stopped on the side of a highway. The officer spoke to the driver who claimed she had car trouble. The woman and her passenger were both wearing seat belts but a 3-year-old in the back seat was not properly restrained. When the driver was asked for ID she claimed she did not have any though her purse was near the front console. According to the police report it was believed that the driver was high on drugs.
The driver's passenger attempted several stories and lies before confiding in the officer when a search revealed methamphetamine and a pipe. The driver had taken meth and then smoked marijuana to calm down. She had taken prescription Xanax earlier in the day. The child in the car was hers and she had driven while high.
The driver was charged with possession of methamphetamine, possession of drug-related objects, DUI, endangering a child by driving under the influence of drugs, obstruction of law enforcement officers, giving false name and date of birth, expired tag, cracked windshield and driving while unlicensed.
If you have questions about Georgia DUI laws, get the answers in Clayton County DUI injury attorney Shane Smith's book, I Was Hit By a Drunk Driver: What Do I Do Next? Contact Shane Smith Law to schedule a free legal consultation.