Vancouver DUI Law Blog

It was widely reported today that the National Traffic Safety Board has recommended that all 50 states lower their DUI standards to .05. All states currently use a .08 blood-alcohol content standard for DUIs. Lowering the level to .05 would likely result in thousands of additional DUI arrests and convictions every year. Although he NTSB has no legal authority, the group has been successful in the past at pushing for tougher drunk driving laws.

The legal troubles continue for former Lions wide receiver Titus Young, who was recently arrested twice in one day for drunk driving and burglary charges in California. He was stopped by police early Sunday morning after his car was spotted driving toward oncoming traffic. He was subsequently cited for DUI and released. Several hours later, police responded to a report at an impound lot of a man scaling the fence. It turns out it was Young trying to retrieve his vehicle which was impounded. Police arrested him on suspicion of burglary.

When a person is pulled over for a traffic stop, the driver is prepared for questions by the officer. The information gathered is often used as evidence, if a charge is made. When a vehicle is stopped for a suspected drunk driving, the officer may ask the driver to comply with blood alcohol tests in order to determine if they are over or under the limit. How this information is gathered is crucial because it can often determine if the results from the test can be used against the driver to charge them with a DWI.

The United States Supreme Court has recently made it harder for police to obtain blood tests from drivers without a warrant. This decision was based on a 2010 incident that was being argued. The driver in that case was pulled over and asked to complete a series of field sobriety tests. It was stated that the driver performed poorly on all of them. From there, the officer took the driver to the hospital, read the driver an implied consent form and asked him to submit a blood sample, but the driver refused. The officer did not obtain a search warrant and ordered the lab tech to draw the blood, which revealed that his blood alcohol content was 0.154.

When a Washington driver is stopped by a police officer, they may immediately wonder or inquire about the reason for the stop. One incident involving a driver accused of drunk driving should have the attention of drivers everywhere.

A Portland man who was pulled over for a suspected drunk driving after he left an area club in his truck and allegedly squealed his tires and fishtailed the vehicle. The accused is fighting the charges and is claiming that police officers beat him up. The police report accuses the driver of belligerence and breath test refusal. A video of the incident shows three officers holding the driver's hands behind him and beating the accused driver.