How to Avoid Getting a DUI

How to Avoid Getting a DUI…

In order to avoid a DUI charge you will need to do the following:

Keep you Blood Alcohol Content (ratio of alcohol to blood or breath) level low all night. Eat food and keep something in your stomach besides alcoholic beverages all night long. Alternate alcoholic beverages with non-alcoholic beverages such as water, tea, or soda. Sip your beverage—DO NOT CHUG.
Have a designated driver or alternative to driving. Common alternatives include using your feet while moving them in an alternating fashion—also known as walking. Call a cab or ride the bus with all the other drunks.
DON”T DRINK.

It’s as simple as those three strategies. A DUI involves driving with a Blood Alcohol Content level (BAC) of .08 or more (.04 for commercial drivers). ***An important reminder—for those of you who are under 21—Illinois has a zero tolerance for having alcohol in your blood while driving a vehicle.*** The best way to stay under this limit is to know your limit in terms of being a drunken idiot. Seriously though, the following guidelines have been established for drinking and driving responsibly. It all depends on your size, gender, and alcohol tolerance.

Average Male—170 pounds

To stay under the .08 limit you can drink 4 alcoholic beverages in 1 hour.

To stay under the .04 limit for commercial drivers you have to drink less than 3 alcoholic beverages in 1 hour.

Average Female—137 pounds

To stay under the .08 limit you can drink about 3 drinks in 1 hour.

To stay under the .04 limit for commercial drivers you have to drink less than 2 ½ alcohol beverages in 1 hour.

The effect alcohol can have on someone is usually determined by several factors:

Amount of alcohol consumed, and
The rate at which the alcohol is absorbed into your body,
Your gender,
Your body weight,
Your alcohol tolerance,
Your mood,
Your environment,
The amount of food you have consumed.

***Important reminder***

You can STILL be convicted of a DUI when your BAC level falls within the .05 and .08 range IF additional information gathered during the traffic stop determines that you were impaired while driving. The Field Sobriety Test (FST) can allow the police to determine your level of impairment.