Many erroneously believe that
the .05% BAC for DUI's in Utah is already in effect. That's because
the Utah legislature passed the law changing the BAC from .08% to .05%
for a presumptive DUI way back in 2017. If the legislature passed the
law, and it is a good idea, some wonder why Utah would wait almost two
years to put the law into effect.
The
Utah Department of Public Safety (DPS) has begun an education campaign
promoting the upcoming change. That campaign advises that between
2006 and 2015 there were 23 fatal crashes in Utah involving a BAC
between a .05 and a.07, thus justifying the downward departure from the
.08% BAC national standard. DPS also reminds us that in the 1990's
Utah was the first in the nation to lower the BAC presumptive DUI from
the national norm of .10% to a .08% BAC, and Utah is leading the charge
again.
Utah is not the first in the world
to change the DUI presumptive level to a .05%. European nations beat
Utah to that honor, and to their credit, they saw an 8-12% reduction in
DUI related fatalities after the change. A similar reduction was seen
in the United States when the presumptive DUI level was reduced from
.10% BAC to .08% BAC.
The bottom line is
that a person who drinks alcohol is going to have to drink a lot less
if they want to legally drive. DPS's suggestion is that if you drink,
don't drive, though that is not the law . . . yet. Because everyone's
metabolism is different, getting to a .05% BAC could result from one to
four alcoholic beverages within a two hour period. A person may not
even be feeling the effects of the alcohol and still be at a .05%.
This
upcoming New Years Eve, if you drink, please do so responsibly. Have a
sober designated driver, or call a Lyft, Uber, or taxi when are done
celebrating. If you do decide to drive after drinking, you will likely
be doing so in violation of Utah's new law. Law enforcement will be
out in force that night hosting their own celebration of the new law
that makes their jobs easier. If you encounter one of them, be polite,
do the best you can in the field sobriety tests, and call Ed Jones,an
expert DUI lawyer as soon as possible. www.DUIut.com or www.EdJonesLaw.com.
