Information on Driving laws
OVI, DUI, OR DWI, Taking Breath tests, Blood Alcohol Level
License Suspension Drug Related Vehicle Forfeitures Reckless Operation/Reckless Driving
OVI, DUI, or DWI
OVI or operating a vehicle under the influence and DUI, or driving under the influence, is the crime of operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or drugs including prescription drugs. A driver doesn’t need to be drunk or intoxicated to be convicted of an OVI. It is sufficient evidence if the driver is unable to maneuver the vehicle safely. In Ohio the level of alcohol intoxication required for an OVI conviction is regulated as being a blood alcohol level of .08. In some jurisdictions this crime is called DWI, or driving while intoxicated, and in others it’s called OWI, or operating while intoxicated. In most states the penalties are severe and can include revocation of your driver’s license, fines or a jail or community service sentence. Most states apply a zero tolerance policy, which in practice means a low permissible blood alcohol level in cases where people under 21 are found driving while intoxicated. In Ohio, for example, the permitted blood alcohol level to operate a motor vehicle for people under 21 is .02. Repeat offenders of all ages are punished more severely. In Ohio a fourth OVI conviction in six years is a felony. Ohio recently made it a felony to have five convictions for DUI or OVI in a twenty year period.
Taking Breath Tests
The police have three main methods determining if you are driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs which include observation of your driving behavior, chemical tests, and sobriety tests, such as the walk and turn test, the one leg stand and the horizontal gaze nystagmus (HGN) test. The chemical tests are generally blood, breath or urine tests. Blood tests measure the amount of various substances in your blood, while breath or urine tests calculate the amount of substances in your system using a mathematical formula. In roadside sobriety checks portable breath tests are a common method of establishing whether or not you are under the influence of alcohol or intoxicated. In most states you’re obliged to submit to the blood, breath or urine tests at the request of a police officer and failure to do so can result in the immediate confiscation of your driver’s license. In Ohio these are referred to as implied consent laws.
Blood Alcohol Level
When you drink alcohol it passes directly from your stomach to the blood stream. Your blood alcohol level, or BAL, is measured in milligrams in alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood or in milligrams percent. A BAL of .10 means you have one percent of alcohol in your blood. Because the liver can only handle a certain amount of alcohol at a time, usually about one drink per hour, the remainder accumulates in your blood stream and impairs many normal functions such as the ability to coordinate movement, exercise good judgment, and perform basic motor functions. In Ohio the permitted BAL while driving is .08. A man weighing 180 pounds who consumes four beers in a two-hour period can expect his BAL to be well over the legal driving limits. Police sometimes use breath-analyzing machines to estimate BAL, although tests performed on blood or urine samples are generally regarded as been more accurate.