WHAT TO DO IF YOU’RE CHARGED FOR DRINK-DRIVING

Whatever happens, do not panic. With some clear thought and guidance from an experienced lawyer, you may be able to reduce and mitigate the consequences of your indiscretion.

The first step is to understand the charges against you.

What is Drink-Driving and What are the Punishments?

Section 67 of the Road Traffic Act sets out the offence for driving on a road or other public place while under the influence of alcohol or other intoxicants. There are two ways you may be found to have committed the act of drink-driving:

• When a breathalyzer test or blood test is performed on you, and you have been found to exceed the legal limits (which are 35microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath or 80 milligrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood).
• When you are found unfit to drive because you are so drunk that you are incapable of having proper control of the vehicle you are driving or riding. No breathalyzer or blood tests are necessary to charge you for this.

A first-time offender may be liable to a fine of between $2,000 and $10,000 and/or imprisonment for up to 1 year. The offender’s driving licence will also be revoked for at least two years. The offender may escape a prison sentence.

A repeat offender faces a fine of between $5,000 and $20,000 and up to 2 years’ imprisonment. The offender’s driving licence will be revoked for a minimum of 5 years. The offender will not escape a prison sentence.

What Sentence Will You Get?

As always, this depends on many factors, which include

• prior offences, including traffic offences
• the need to deter the general public from drink-driving
• the need to rehabilitate offenders
• aggravating factors (for example, an offender may have resisted arrest and behaved badly to police officers)
• mitigating factors (for example, the offender has shown his remorse by compensating an injured victim, may have been an upstanding citizen with years of philanthropic work).

3 of the more important factors considered by the court for drink-driving offences are:

The nature and extent of actual or potential harm caused by the offence

Here, the court will consider the nature and degree of harm caused by the drink-driving, including property damage, physical injury and even loss of life.

The driver’s culpability (or fault) for the offence

Here, the court will consider how blameworthy or culpable you are for drink-driving. It does this by considering how drunk you were with reference to the breathalyzer or blood tests results, with the assumption that the higher the alcohol level, the harsher the punishment should be. The court will also look into the circumstances of your choice to drink and drive and all relevant behaviour leading up to being charged in court.

Your Antecedents (previous offences)

Another thing the courts consider in all criminal prosecutions and drink-driving cases are antecedents (or your previous convictions and offences). Even minor, compoundable traffic offences will be taken into account by the courts as. An aggravating factor under Section 139AA of the Road traffic Act.

Under Section 67A of the Road Traffic Act, the aggravated sentence may even be up to 3 times the usual sentence if you have antecedents which are serious road traffic offences.