Traffic Law DUI/DWI Newsletters

Criminal Offense of Hit and Run and Failure to Remain at the Scene

A hit and run car accident is generally defined as a person's failure to stop after a motor vehicle accident. When a person operating a motor vehicle is involved in an accident, the operator is legally required to stop, provide information to the owner of whatever property is damaged, and provide any aid to anyone who may have been injured. Many state statutes require a motorist to render all the aid that reasonably appears to him or her, as an ordinary person, to be necessary. The duty is not excused even if the injured person is unconscious, dead, or believed to be dead.

License Suspensions for DUI/DWI

Even if a driving under the influence (DUI) or driving while intoxicated (DWI) defendant does not receive a sentence of incarceration, it is likely that the defendant's license will be suspended or revoked. Courts are often limited by statute as to whether they can change the suspension terms to limit the impact on a defendant. A license suspension is generally not intended as a punishment but rather as a civil penalty imposed to protect the public.

Physician-Patient Privilege in Drunk Driving Cases

It is common for a motorist suspected of drunk driving to come into contract with a physician. For example, if the motorist is injured in a traffic accident, first aid may be administered by a physician at the accident scene or the motorist may be taken to a hospital for treatment. In addition, law enforcement agencies often have policies in place that require them to take any motorists that are suspected of being intoxicated to a physician.

Penalties for DUI/DWI Offenses Involving the Operation of a Boat

The United States Coast Guard and the states cooperate fully in enforcement of laws to remove impaired boat operators from the waters. Both the Coast Guard and every state impose stringent penalties for violating boating under the influence (BUI) laws.

Criminal Offense of Attempting to Elude

It is against the law to attempt to elude a police officer by willfully failing to stop a vehicle if the officer gives you an audible or visual signal to stop and the police officer is in uniform, prominently displaying a badge or other insignia. If a police officer is in an appropriately marked official police vehicle when he or she gives the signal stop, whether or not the officer is in uniform, the vehicle driver may not attempt to elude the officer by willfully failing to stop the vehicle.