West Virginia and Maryland both make driving under the influence ( DUI ) a crime punishable by serious penalties. This includes not only driving under the influence of alcohol, but also drugs. While most people are familiar with the legal limit associated with alcohol DUIs (.08) and how law enforcement and prosecutors secure evidence of alcohol intoxication (breath or blood tests), most people do ...
In a previous blog , we discussed Field Sobriety Tests – which include the walk-and-turn, stand and balance, and Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus – and how they are important tools used by law enforcement officers to gather evidence that supports their justification to arrest and charge suspects. We also discussed how suspects have a right to refuse those tests. Whether a suspect chooses to take Field ...
Whether it was at a bar, at a house party or any other even that serves alcohol, the readers of our Martinsburg DUI/DWI law blog have probably heard someone declare that he or she is safe to drive home. Individuals might say that they’ve only had one beer, a couple drinks or that it has been a couple of hours since their last drink. We mentioned in our prior post that making an educated guess ...
Under West Virginia law, individuals with a .08 blood alcohol content are considered to be a drunk driver if they get behind the wheel of a car. Most Martinsburg drivers are probably aware of this legal .08 BAC limit. Even visitors can probably make an educated guess as to West Virginia’s legal limit since it is common across most jurisdictions. Even though it is a well-known law, it doesn’t mean ...
In West Virginia, there isn’t really a criminal offense called "plowing under the influence" or PUI, but it doesn’t mean that an individual cannot be arrested for the behavior it describes. That is exactly the situation that a snow plow driver found himself in late this past month. On Jan. 29, a deputy in McDowell County observed a snow plow with a headlight that wasn’t properly functioning. It ...