UNDERAGE DRINKING AND DRIVING LAWS

In North Carolina there are many laws that deal with drunk driving and underage drinking. The following information is an overview of each of those laws. Theses laws were all taken from the source on the side of the page.

Mandatory BAC Testing for Drivers who Survive

Mandatory blood alcohol testing of all drivers involved in serious injury crashes who survive.

Felony DUI

Law that makes DUI/DWI a felony offense based on the number of prior convictions.

Ignition Interlock

An alcohol ignition interlock is a device installed in an offender’s vehicle that prevents it from starting if the driver’s BAC is above a specified set limit.

Vehicle Impound

Seizure and impoundment of the vehicle operated by a DUI/DWI offender for a predetermined period of time

Vehicle Sanctions While Suspended

Seizure and sale of the vehicle operated by an offender at the time the alcohol-related offense was committed.

Vehicle Confiscation

Seizure of the vehicle operated by an offender at the time the alcohol-related offense was committed.

Primary Belt Law

Law allowing police to stop and ticket a driver for non-use of safety belt without requiring that the driver commit or be cited for another offense.

Keg Registration

A requirement for beer kegs and other large beer containers to be tagged with identification tags and recording the purchaser’s name, address and location where the keg is to be used in order to track the source, if minors are served.

Mandatory Alcohol Assessment/Treatment

Mandatory alcohol assessment and treatment: law than mandates that convicted DUI/DWI offenders undergo an assessment of alcohol abuse problems and participate in required treatment program.

.08 Per Se

Law that makes it illegal to operate a motor vehicle at or above .08 Blood Alcohol Concentration.

Administrative License Revocation

This law provides for prompt administrative license suspension of offenders who fail a BAC test by registering above the illegal limit or refuse to submit to a test.

Child Endangerment

Law that creates a separate offense or enhances existing DUI/DWI penalties for offender who drives under the influence with a minor child in the vehicle.

Dram Shop

A term referring to liability of establishments arising out of the sale of alcohol to obviously intoxicated persons or minor who subsequently cause death or injury to third-parties as a result of alcohol-related crashes.

Fake Id

A statute that creates an offense for an underage person to use a fraudulent ID and provides for a driver's license suspension for attempting to purchase alcohol using a false ID.

Graduated Drivers Licensing

A three-tiered licensing system under which novice drivers are given full driving privileges gradually, after an extended period of education, supervised driving with nighttime restrictions and citation and alcohol-free driving record.

Happy Hour Laws

A term used to refer to reduced price or multiple drink alcohol sales practices and promotions that encourage excessive alcohol consumption.

High BAC

High BAC refers to a driver who drives with a blood alcohol concentration of .15 or higher at the time of arrest.

Mandatory Jail 2nd Offense

A statute that mandates an individual who has been convicted of a second offense of DUI/DWI receive a jail term as part of the sanctions he/she receives.

Mandatory Alcohol Education

A law which mandates that convicted DUI/DWI offenders complete a an alcohol education program before driving privileges can be reinstated.

Open Container Law that is Federally Compliant

Open container laws prohibit the possession of any open alcoholic beverage container and the consumption of any alcoholic beverage in the passenger area of a motor vehicle.

Preliminary Breath Tester

Portable breath testing device used to determine BAC of suspected DUI/DWI offenders.

Repeat Offender Law that is Federally Compliant

Repeat offenders are those offenders who have two or more drunk driving offenses. In order to comply, the statute must include the following four penalties:

  1. A minimum one-year hard license suspension
  2. Impoundment, immobilization or the installation of an ignition interlock device on all vehicles owned by the offender.
  3. All offenders must undergo an assessment of their degree of alcohol abuse and the law must authorize the imposition of treatment as appropriate.
  4. There must be a mandatory minimum sentence.

Vehicular Homicide

Statutes which allow a homicide charge to be brought against an individual who kills another person through the operation of a motor vehicle, either intentionally or negligently.

Victim Rights Constitutional Amendment

An Amendment to the Constitution of the U.S. or a state, that guarantees a crime victim the right to be notified of, present at, and heard at, all stages of the criminal justice process at which the defendant has such rights. These rights should also include the right to restitution and the right to be notified of an inmate's escape or release from prison.

Youth Attempt at Purchase

A statute which makes it illegal for a person age 21 years or younger to attempt to purchase alcohol. States were coded as having this law if they specifically prohibit minors from attempting to purchase alcohol.

Youth Consumption of Alcohol

States are coded as having this law if their policies specifically prohibit minors (defined as under age 21) from consuming alcoholic beverages. Note that this means observed drinking in most cases, not merely the presence of a positive blood alcohol concentration (BAC) from a breath test.

Youth Purchase

Laws that make it an offense for an individual 21 years or younger to purchase alcohol and provide for significant penalties including driver's license suspension.

Selling/Furnishing Alcohol to Youth

All states have laws prohibiting the furnishing of alcoholic beverages to minors.

Zero Tolerance

A zero tolerance law makes it illegal per se for persons under the age of 21 to drive with any measurable amount of alcohol in their blood. Some states allow BAC levels of .01 or a maximum of.02 BAC to allow for variation in alcohol testing instruments. Since, it is illegal in every state for persons under the age of 21 to purchase and publicly possess alcoholic beverages, it should be illegal for persons under 21 who have been drinking to drive.
Penalties for violating zero tolerances vary from state to state. Some states have automatic license suspensions for violators. These laws are often referred to as “use and lose” laws.

Sobriety Checkpoints

Sobriety checkpoints are an enforcement program that allows officers to stop all or predetermined vehicles to check for sobriety of the drivers.

Social Host

Statute or case law that imposes potential liability on social hosts as a result of their serving alcohol to obviously intoxicated persons or minors who subsequently are involved in crashes causing death or injury to third-parties.