Drunk drivers cause more than 17,000 deaths annually. This equates to 310 funerals each week or one death every 30 minutes.
In New York State slightly more than 30% of the fatal crashes are alcohol related.
There is also an injury every 2 minutes associate with drunk driving. A driver suspected of impaired driving may be asked to submit to a blood, breath, urine or saliva test to determine the presence of alcohol or drugs in the body.
About three in every ten Americans will be involved in an alcohol-related crash at some time in their lives.
In New York State, a driver’s ability to operate a motor vehicle may be considered legally impaired if their Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) exceeds 0.05% A driver is legally intoxicated if their BAC is 0.08% or greater.
In a recent study, NHTSA found that 16% of weekend nighttime drivers (roughly one in six) tested positive for illicit drugs.
Drivers on New York’s highways are deemed to have given their consent to a test of their blood, breath, urine or saliva for the purpose of determining the presence of alcohol and or other drugs. A refusal to submit to a chemical test will result in automatic license suspension, even if found not guilty of impaired driving. This entire set of guidelines is called the Implied Consent Law.
