Driving while under the influence of alcohol and drugs is a criminal offense that can result in a conviction and serious penalties. It is also a serious risk to others on the road, as well as to yourself.
How Does It Affect You?
Alcohol is a drug that has many effects on the body and brain. It can change your perception, reduce concentration and make you more easily distracted. It can also affect your hand-eye coordination and cause you to be less aware of what is happening around you.
Having too much alcohol in your system can affect how you think, feel and react to situations. It can affect your ability to process information quickly, and this in turn can make it more difficult to avoid accidents or other dangers on the road.
Drivers under the influence of alcohol can experience a number of symptoms as they drive, including blurred vision, difficulty focusing and double vision. They may also have problems judging distance, speed and the movement of other vehicles. They may not be able to distinguish colors on traffic signs and signals, or recognize the color of other drivers’ lights.
This can lead to accidents, particularly when driving on the highway. It is illegal in all 50 states to drive with a blood alcohol content (BAC) of 0.08% or higher.
The consequences of driving under the influence can be life-changing, including loss of license, jail time and fines. You can prevent a DUI arrest by making sure you don’t drink too much and by following a few important tips.
Weakens Your Judgment
People who are under the influence of alcohol have a tendency to make decisions that aren’t right for them. This can include deciding to turn in front of another car, making sudden changes or taking risks that aren’t safe for themselves or others on the road.
If you have ever been arrested for a DUI, you know that police officers perform field sobriety tests to determine if you are under the influence of alcohol. These tests test your hand-eye coordination, balance, and your reaction time.
Law enforcement agencies also use other methods to help them determine if you are under the influence of drugs. This can be done by testing your urine or saliva for a certain drug, or checking the contents of your blood to see if there is an amount of a particular drug present.
Using illegal drugs or prescription medications can have a similar effect as drinking alcohol and can cause the same kinds of side effects. In addition to causing a person to become less alert and more impaired, these drugs can make the person more aggressive and unfocused.
This can result in an accident or other dangerous situation that can be very painful for the driver and other passengers on the road. They can even cause severe injuries and death.
In cases where there is a charge of operating under the influence of drugs, a drug recognition expert will typically be called to testify in court. This will help the jury understand the symptoms that are observed by the arresting officer.
