Question: My daughter got a DUI and I need some advice. She's a minor and only 17 and in high school. She was driving with a friend and she got stopped by a cop for a curfew violation.
She was coming home from a party when she was stopped and the police officer in Sandy Springs said that she was actually driving too slowly and that's what made him suspicious. Unfortunately, she looks even younger than 17.
My daughter did all the tests that the officer requested and she took a blood test. She blew a .06. I don't think that's too drunk. She is a great student and she's planning to go to college and then to graduate school. I think she wants to be a social worker or a nurse or a teacher.
She's very remorseful about what happened and realizes that she could have hurt someone and herself. I've told her that I'm going to sell her car and that if she wants to drive she has to buy her own vehicle from now on.
My wife has two DUIs in her past and isn't that concerned. My wife told our daughter that .06 really isn't even buzzed and that she really shouldn't worry about anything. My wife, however, is an alcoholic and she used to having drinking contests with her father, even while he was attending AA meetings.
Please tell me your opinion of my daughter's DUI case.
B.R. in Sandy Springs
Answer: For Georgia drivers under the age of 21, a blood-alcohol concentration of .06 is actually 3 times the legal limit. The legal, or per se, limit for people under 21 for DUI purposes is .02.
It sounds like your daughter is a Class D license holder and with a Class D license she is not allowed to drive between the hours of 12:00 midnight and 6:00 a.m.
Interestingly, a frequent indicator to police that an individual is intoxicated is driving below the speed limit. Someone driving too slowly will likely raise the suspicions of law enforcement.
To really provide a good analysis of the case and what your daughter's best legal defenses could be, we'd have to get a copy of the police report and a copy of the video of the incident.
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