The Georgia DUI Laws and Conseques

In Georgia, the blood-alcohol content (BAC) at which you can legally operate a vehicle is .08. If you are under the legal drinking age of 21, you may have only .02 percent BAC. If an officer convincingly proves that you were driving unsafely, .05 BAC is enough to get a conviction for DUI. Also, prescription and nonprescription drugs hold the same penalties if you should have known that you would be impaired to operate a vehicle or machinery.
Your driver's license may immediately be suspended for a year if your blood-alcohol content (BAC) is above the legal limit for your first offense, three years for your second offense, or five years for your third offense; it may also be suspended if you refuse field sobriety or chemical tests.

A driver's best-case scenario is being required to go through mandatory alcohol education and possibly treatment and/or assessment. However, other penalties include:

•  having an ‘ignition interlock device' attached to your car. This breath-testing device must be activated by driver with no more than .02 BAC level in order to start the automobile.

•  a fine or jail time of anywhere from ten days to one year. You will spend the first night in jail unless your blood-alcohol content (BAC) was less than .08 grams.

•  If this is your fourth offense, in Georgia your vehicle may be confiscated.

•  You may have to complete a course at DUI school.

•  There is a fee to reinstate your license.

There is a wide range of penalties. An experienced attorney, knowledgable in Georgia DUI law, is your best option.

Fines, jail time, probation, and community service are all possible if you are convicted of DUI. Minimum penalties may be applied for first-time offenses, with increased penalties for each offense thereafter. Many factors may be taken into account with a DUI offense:

• Driver has a history of DUI violations
• Driver was operating a commercial vehicle at the time of the DUI
• The violation occurred while there was a child in the vehicle
• The offense happened in concurrence with another moving violation
• There was an accident in which someone was injured or killed
• The driver was under the legal drinking age.

If you plead guilty or are convicted of DUI, you will receive twelve months' probation, less any jail time already served. In addition, you will complete at least 40 hours of community service; if under 21, it is at least 20 hours.
Your license will be suspended for at least one year if you are over age 21. Under age 21 and under .08 BAC, your license will be suspended for at least six months. Over .08 BAC it is at least one year's suspension. However, the prosecuting officer may be able to prove that you were driving unsafely at .05 BAC. Limited driving privileges are possible for you to go to school and work.

Check your insurance policy closely. Many policies are not effective if you have had any alcohol to drink, even if you are not over the legal limit. This limitation varies between insurance companies.

The penalties you receive if convicted of DUI will be determined at your sentencing hearing.

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