You might think that you can have one drink, or two drinks, especially with a meal, and still be fine to drive. There are many reasons this way of thinking can be problematic. Not least because it is an inexact science, and everyone’s body processes alcohol differently.
Here, in New York, believing you can drink a small amount and still be ok to drive can lead to a drunk driving charge as — even if you blow below 0.08% on a Breathalyzer test. If you are under 21 years of age, they can ticket you for a blood alcohol content (BAC) of 0.02% due to the zero-tolerance rule law for young drivers.
New York has a variety of tickets related to driving after drinking alcohol
New York police can choose from three types of tickets. They can issue a ticket for driving while impaired (DWAI), driving while intoxicated (DWI), or aggravated driving while intoxicated (AGG DWI). Here are the relevant blood alcohol limits:
- DWAI: Your Breathalyzer test reads between 0.05% and 0.07% BAC.
- DWI: You test between 0.08% and 0.17% BAC. If you are a commercial driver, the limit drops to 0.04% BAC.
- AGG DWI: Your BAC test reads 0.18% or higher.
Regardless of which charge you get, the consequences are severe, and previous alcohol-related driving offenses can increase the punishment for any of the offenses. Refusing a breath test or chemical test is also not a viable option as it will result in an automatic license revocation of at least one year. If the police give you a drunk driving ticket, your best option is to accept it then look for ways to overturn or reduce the charge.