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Can you get a DUI for driving hungover?

| Aug 13, 2021 | DUI

You know it isn’t safe to drive after you’ve been drinking, and you don’t want to take any chances with your life — or anybody else’s safety. Your designated driver bailed, so you slept on your best friend’s couch instead of driving home last night.

You may want to plan to spend a good chunk of the next day at your best friend’s place, too. Otherwise, you could still end up with a DUI charge for driving while you were hungover.

Isn’t the legal blood alcohol concentration (BAC) limit .08%?

How can you get charged with drunk driving when your blood alcohol content level has returned to well below the .08% limit?

Well, .08% is the per se limit for your BAC. With a score that high or above, the police don’t need any other evidence that you’re legally impaired by alcohol to make an arrest. That does not mean, however, that you can’t be charged with driving under the influence for other reasons.

According to statute, you can be charged whenever you’re under the influence of alcohol or other chemical substances to the point that a “person’s normal faculties are impaired.”  When you’re hungover, you may not have totally cleared the alcohol from your system — and you definitely may be feeling less capable than normal. In fact, studies indicate that driving while hungover is just as bad as driving drunk.

What if you’re facing charges?

It’s frustrating to find yourself in legal trouble for a DUI when you were trying to do the right thing. Taking a proactive approach to your own defense is the smartest move you can make.