Types of DUI charges
DUI Less Safe
Most people believe you have to have the magic .08 blood alcohol level in order to be convicted of DUI. However Georgia law provides that if you test .05 or less, a jury or trier of fact may infer that you are not a less safe driver. However, if the government can show through proper evidence that you were indeed a less safe driver, you could be convicted for DUI at any alcohol level. Those who are arrested for DUI and refuse the breath test will be charged with a less safe DUI. The State will be required to prove that the motorists' ability to drive is affected to the extent that it has made him a less safe driver.
DUI Per Se
If you blow into the Georgia Intoxilyzer 5000 machine and register above the legal limit for your classification, you will be charged with DUI “per se.” You may also be charged with DUI per se when you drive with a prohibited substance in your system such as cocaine metabolites or other illegal drugs.
If you are over the age of twenty-one (21), you will be charged with DUI per se if you register .08 grams of alcohol or more on the Intoxilyzer or on a blood test.
Under 21
If you are under twenty-one (21) years of age, an alcohol reading of .02 will earn you a “per se” charge under the DUI statute. Enhanced license suspension penalties apply to this “zero tolerance” law despite scientific evidence that a .02 level has little or no effect on one's ability to drive. It is critically important to hire a DUI attorney with the knowledge and experience to help “under 21” motorists save their privilege to drive. The Ryczek Firm lawyers have mastered the exceptions to the harsh “under 21 suspensions” and we are ready to help you preserve your ability to drive to school and work.
Commercial Drivers
If you were operating a commercial vehicle when you were stopped and your blood alcohol level was .04, then you are “per se” in violation of the DUI statute. Although no commercial driver should ever consume alcohol, even the government studies show that such a low level has little or no effect on a driver safety. Worse yet, the Intoxilyzer 5000 machine is inaccurate at testing such a nearly imperceptible alcohol level, and the Georgia does not check the Georgia Intoxilyzer 5000 for calibration at such a low level.