What is a rising BAC (Blood Alcohol Content) defense?

It is unlawful to have an excessive blood-alcohol concentration (BAC) at the time of driving — not at the time of being tested. Since it takes between 45 minutes and 3 hours for alcohol to be absorbed into the system, an individual’s BAC may continue to rise for some time after he is stopped and arrested.

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Florida DUI: The Troubled Background Of The Intoxilyzer 8000

Florida first used the Intoxilyzer 8000, the machine that conducts breath tests, in March 2006 and issues have been litigated with it from the very beginning, according to David Katz, a Florida attorney whose practice focuses in the areas of DUI and criminal defense and a former Intoxilyzer Specialist with the State of Florida.

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What is drunk driving and why are drunk driving laws so rigorously enforced?

Drunk driving, sometimes called driving while intoxicated (DWI) or driving under the influence (DUI), can stem from two different scenarios under drunk driving laws: the first is when a driver has high blood-alcohol levels, and the second is when a driver is physically impaired by the use of a substance. A drunk driving offense is taken very seriously by authorities because of the excessive number of drunk driving-related deaths that have been reported in recent decades.

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What evidence is needed to arrest someone suspected of drunk driving?

Generally speaking, there are four types of evidence that a police officer will consider and gather in a drunk driving investigation: gross observations of behavior in general; specific observations of what are known as ‘field sobriety tests’ (FST); information obtained from questioning the suspect; and chemical test results of the motorist’s blood, breath or urine.

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Why am I being charged with both a DUI and driving with excessive blood alcohol content?

Originally, there were only two offenses a drunk driver could face: a DUI or a DWI. In recent years, however, a large majority of states have also enacted a second, so-called ‘per se’ offense: driving with an excessive BAC, or blood-alcohol concentration, which is set at 0.08% in all 50 states now. If you refuse a chemical test, only the traditional DWI/DUI offense will be charged because an officer is unable to accurately assess you blood alcohol content.

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