Legal Drinking Limit in Tennessee
While it`s hard to determine the exact number of drinks needed to get a person to the “legal limit,” the best answer is to always have a sober driver with you or call a taxi or rideshare. Here`s a helpful guide to Tennessee DUI laws. Thus, .08, although the legal limit, is not a universal goal. But for now, the national legal limit, and Tennessee`s, remains at 0.08. That is, unless you are a minor or driving a commercial vehicle. If you are under 21 years of age, any trace of alcohol justifies a drunk driving fee. If you drive a commercial vehicle, the legal blood alcohol limit is 0.04. While blood alcohol limits may seem simple on the surface — getting a drunk driving conviction if you exceed the limit, unscathed if you`re below it — it`s actually a bit more complicated than that. Well, while the legal limit in Tennessee is cut and dry, your blood alcohol level isn`t as open and closed as determining whether you`re charged with a DUI.
Read on to learn more about what you need to know about ADP, how it is determined, your rights, and its role in determining a drunk driving charge and/or conviction if you are ever arrested on suspicion of impaired driving. While it is common knowledge that driving your motor vehicle and being obstructed by alcohol or drugs is dangerous for you, your passengers and other motorists, at what point does it become a crime? In Tennessee, as in other states, drinking and driving is illegal if you are under the influence (DUI) while driving. You can also break the law if you have drunk so much alcohol that your blood alcohol level is 0.08% or higher when driving. And the law is the same in Nashville and Knoxville – the law is the same throughout the volunteer state. Occupants of the vehicle can consume alcohol without legal consequences, but it is illegal for the driver to do so, although local laws still apply. A driver who produces more than 0.08% blood alcohol level during a chemical test will be penalized for driving under the influence of alcohol (DUI). What is the blood alcohol level in Tennessee? The legal limit in Tennessee for alcohol testing or alcohol testing is 0.08. What 0.08 essentially means is a measure of the number of grams of alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood. Tennessee has what`s called aggravated drunk driving. Every time you`re at 0.20 or essentially two-and-a-half times the legal limit or more, you`ll have an improvement, meaning that if convicted, you`ll have to spend seven consecutive days in jail, instead of the minimum of 48 hours for 0.08 DUI. Previously, blood alcohol limits were much more lax.
For example, the first commonly used blood alcohol level in 1938 was 0.15 — nearly double the current national legal limit (also 0.08 — passed by Congress in 2000). The legal blood alcohol limit has decreased over the years due to accident statistics and pressure from groups such as MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving). In fact, it wasn`t until 2013 that the NTSB (National Transportation Safety Board) even proposed lowering the limit to 0.05. In 99 out of 100 cases, IBC is above the legal limit in the cases we defend, and we regularly successfully defend these types of cases. If you have been charged with impaired driving, call us for a free consultation and we will guide you through your options and determine how best to protect your rights. At Turner Law Offices, P.C., our DUI lawyers are familiar with all methods of alcohol testing (BAC). The blood test is not foolproof, and there are many reasons why blood alcohol results are wrong. Our experienced DUI attorneys at Turner Law Offices, P.C. will meet with you and discuss the method of measuring blood alcohol and discuss your legal defenses. Request a free initial consultation online or call today for a free, no-obligation one-on-one consultation with one of our experienced drink-driving lawyers. Under Tennessee`s Dram Shop Act, a licensed drinking establishment can be held liable for bodily harm caused by intoxication if the establishment sells alcohol to a person known to be under the age of 21 or to a person who is obviously drunk, and there is evidence that the sale and consumption of that alcohol caused the harm.
However, unlike the speed limit, there is no gray area. You probably won`t get a ticket for driving 71 in a 70mph zone, but a blood alcohol level of 0.08 alone is enough for a drunk driving conviction, as impaired drivers usually don`t get the benefit of the doubt. After all, no one can justify the need to drive drunk like you would too fast. Keep in mind that there are no laws that require you to undergo field sobriety testing, especially invasive blood tests. Some law enforcement officers may falsely claim that this is required by law when there is none (also known as implied consent laws). If you feel uncomfortable with this or are sure of your innocence, you can respectfully reject your position or repeat it repeatedly. The current blood alcohol limit in Tennessee, as long as you`re not underage or driving a commercial vehicle (more on that later), is 0.08. It is the concentration of alcohol in the blood that lawmakers see as the tipping point between “safe” and “not safe” for the average person. Just like the 70-mile-per-hour speed limit, .08 is the metaphorical line in the sand. It is a crime for a licensed drinker to sell alcohol to a person under the age of 21. For a first offence, offences are punishable by a fine of $500 to $1,000 and 30 days to six months in jail. For a second offence, the offences are punishable by a fine of up to $3,000 and imprisonment for one to six years.
Repeat offenders are also permanently deprived of their liquor licence. Nationally, it is illegal to operate a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs, or if the blood alcohol level is 0.08% or higher (a blood alcohol level of 0.08% means that eight-tenths of a person`s blood volume is alcohol). A person who has a blood alcohol level of 0.08% or higher is legally intoxicated and unlikely to be able to operate a vehicle safely and responsibly. Note: State laws may always change due to the passage of new laws, decisions in higher courts (including federal decisions), voting initiatives and other means.