If you are under the influence (DUI) and are caught and stopped by the authorities, it should not be taken lightly by anyone since chances are you will not get away with it.

There is a good reason that so many people have been worried about DUI. It is the cause of many fatal accidents and affects the lives of many innocent people, as well as the offender. To make matters worse, it is legal for an adult to drink how much they want to and that only increases the number of drivers on the road who are under the influence.

A common mistake made by drivers under the influence is that they still think they are capable of driving normally and therefore will never be noticed by the police. However, that is most untrue. In fact, the best drivers around will drive crooked if they are intoxicated due to alcohol consumption. This makes it easy to detect vehicles on the road that are being driven by someone who is under the influence of some substance.

Traffic authorities have different ways and means to detect whether a person is drunk or intoxicated from drugs or other neural compounds. One of their ways is by administering a test to measure the amount of alcohol content in the blood. This is also known as BAC. This is measured as the percentage of alcohol in the blood. In the United States, driving with a BAC of 0.08% or higher is illegal and the any driver found to have a BAC ranging in this percentage will be held liable for an offense.

Another test that traffic authorities administer in determining if the driver is intoxicated is through a Breathalyzer. As the name implies, it involves analyzing the breath of the driver. This is usually done at the time that authorities apprehend violators. Drivers are asked to literally blow some air into a device that reads the blood-alcohol-concentration and if it does not fall in the range of being drunk, the driver is free to go.

Some other officers without Breathalyzers would require drivers to take laboratory test such as urine tests to determine the amount of alcohol in the body of the drivers.

If determined to be intoxicated the driver will then be punished with the penalties under the law of the state they are in. These penalties for a DUI vary by state and one state may have harsher consequences than another. The severity of the penalty also depends on whether or not prior DUI offenses have been committed. The first offense is often lighter than it is for subsequent offenses.

In some states the severity of the charge can vary for the offender depending on age with leniency, to a degree, for minors whereas the grown adult will not.

In the past years, DUI cases have become rampant that authorities have enforced more means in preventing and apprehending drivers while under the influence of alcohol or drugs. More awareness campaigns were done in order to have minors and adults alike learn of the dangers of DUI. The government and the citizens must all work hand in hand to prevent more DUI related incidents in the future.

Due to the devastation if an 18 wheeler could cause if in an accident it is mandatory for truckers who hold a CDL license to be required to be tested for drugs and a risk trucking companies don’t want to risk.

Studies have showed that 15% of all interstate truck drivers had marijuana in their system, 12% had stimulants (non-prescription), 5% had prescription stimulants, 2% had cocaine, and less than 1% had alcohol in their system. Now that is an OUI.

The driver does not have to be drunk to be over the limit. The blood alcohol count (BAC) is 0.08% or higher. For truck drivers, it is 0.04%, because they are operating a bigger vehicle and they have long routes.

Most people falsely believe that driving while high on marijuana is not as dangerous as drunken driving. However, this drug also affects the concentration, reaction times and perception and that for up to 24 hours long, whereas alcohol only affects the mind for around 3 to 4 hours and that depends on the amount of alcohol consumed. In fact, marijuana has been the reason behind more than 12% of all fatal accidents involving trucks. That fact proves it is not safe to use marijuana and drive.

Truck drivers work long shifts and sometimes it is hard for them to stay awake. Therefore, they want to get something for it, such as meth or ice. It is very easy for truckers to get hold of those drugs at truck stops. Surveys show that 1 in 5 truckers use those hardcore drugs so they can stay awake.

Law enforcement watches truckers hard. They will not stand for any intoxicated drivers. They will pull a trucker over even if they suspect them. They have ways of testing to see if you are intoxicated. They have the breathalyzer test to see if you have been drinking, they have the field sobriety test, and they can even swab drug test you or search you.

A breathalyzer is a piece of equipment that a driver has to blow into and it will then show whether or not that person has been drinking and if so, how much. A field sobriety test is well know and is made up of different exercises like nystagmus, walking and turning, touching the nose with a finger, balancing on one leg and the Romberg balance test. The nystagmus test is just when an object is put in front of a suspect’s face by the law enforcement officer and the suspect then has to watch it go back and forth. The eyes basically tell all. An officer also can choose to have a chemical test performed on the suspect’s urine or blood.

A swab drug test is basically done by taking a swab and collecting saliva from the mouth. It is then tested and if the results are hot then it is considered an OUI.

The bottom line is it is not safe for truckers or anyone to drive under the influence.

To read more good information about Maine DUI, try these blogs with posts on DUI laws in Maine.

Trucking accidents may seem to cover only a small percentage of the total highway accidents in the US. However, when a trucking accident happens, the damages are more devastating than any regular vehicular accident. Studies have shown that there are many reasons why truck accidents happen. These include: drug and alcohol abuse, speeding, unfamiliar roadway, inadequate surveillance, illegal maneuver, aggressive driving behavior, and other external distractions.

Due to the complex rules of truck operations on the highway, legal claims for truck accidents are also more complicated than any passenger vehicle. Thus, it is important to contact a reputable truck crash attorney in the event that youll have to file a lawsuit for a trucking accident.

There are a number of truck crash attorneys out there, so you have to be careful and selective in choosing the attorney to represent you. Aside from telephone directories, another good place to start is online. The most important thing to ask yourself is this: why is this law firm right for me? Here are some other important things to consider when choosing a truck accident lawyer:

1. For a truck crash accident, you need to have a personal injury attorney. The expertise of a personal injury attorney includes truck accidents, medical malpractice, wrongful death, other forms of professional negligence. Most personal injury law firms have a designated truck crash attorney.

2. Make sure that the truck accident attorney has already handled a number of trucking accident cases before. The more experience the lawyer is in this field, the more he knows how to handle your case successfully. A good truck crash attorney is an expert on Truck Accidents Law. Moreover they are very knowledgeable on the maximum compensation that a client should get depending on the degree of the damages.

3. Verify the truck crash attorney’s professionalism by checking his credentials such as education, bar examination, legal training, and legal practice. A good truck accident lawyer must have an excellent reputation among his colleagues.

Aside from these three important factors, there is a lot to tell from a law firm’s website. Since most law firms use their online sites to advertise their services, it is best that you see helpful and informative insights regarding truck accidents and the laws and regulations about vehicular accidents. By giving clients valuable information, they are helping you make an intelligent decision.

Some states now have two statutory offenses. The first is the traditional offense, variously called driving under the influence of alcohol (DUI), driving while intoxicated/impaired (DWI) or operating while intoxicated/impaired (OWI). The second and more recent is the so-called illegal per se offense of driving with a blood-alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.08% (previously 0.10%) or higher. The first offense requires proof of intoxication, although evidence of BAC is admissible as rebuttably presumptive evidence of that intoxication; the second requires only proof of BAC at the time of being in physical control of a motor vehicle. An accused may be convicted of both offenses, but may only be punished for one.

It is also a criminal offense in all states to drive a vehicle while under the influence of drugs DUID, or under the combined influence of alcohol and drugs; the drugs themselves need not be illegal, but can be prescription or even over-the-counter. In some states, the effects of some herbal remedies (such as Kava Kava extract) fall into this category. This offense requires evidence of impairment as a result of the drugs or drugs and alcohol, although some states have passed laws making driving with the mere presence of certain drugs a criminal offense.

Some states also include a lesser charge of driving with a BAC of 0.05%; other states limit this offense to drivers under the age of 21. All states also now have zero tolerance laws: the license of anyone under 21 driving with a BAC of .01% or higher (.02% in some states) will be suspended. The blood-alcohol limit for commercial drivers is 0.04%. Commercial drivers are also subject to stricter punishments for exceeding the blood-alcohol limit.

Bus drivers may not drive less than 8 hrs. after consuming alcoholic beverages, while under the influence of alcohol or any “street” drug, or while showing a blood alcohol concentration equal to or greater than 0.04 grams per decilitre of blood.

The various versions of “driving under the influence” generally constitute a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in the big house. However, the offense may be elevated to a felony, punishable by a longer stretch in state prison if the incident caused serious bodily injury where its called a felony DUI, death (vehicular manslaughter or vehicular homicide — my uncle caught one of these for a year), or extensive property damage (a state specified dollar amount) or if the defendant has a designated number of prior DUI convictions within a given time period (commonly, 3 prior convictions within 7 years). However, California, which is being followed by a growing number of the states, now charges 2nd-degree murder where the legal state of mind of malice exists”that is, where the defendant exhibited a reckless indifference to the lives of others. Wow, that could get you life!