Houston Underage DUI Lawyer

Underage DUI Attorney Paul Darrow Proudly Serving Houston, TX

Houston Underage DUI LawyersIn the state of Texas, driving while intoxicated (DWI) means drunk driving, and the state uses your blood alcohol concentration (BAC) as a determination for whether you are too intoxicated to operate a motor vehicle. If you are under the age of 21, however, while you can certainly be also be charged with a DWI, you can be charged with driving under the influence (DUI) if you have any detectable amount of alcohol in your system at all, even if you are not impaired by it. This is part of Texas zero tolerance law for those below the legal drinking age.

The main difference between the two charges is the penalties involved: while both will result in a license suspension, DUI suspension periods are much shorter than those for DWI. Know, too, that any alcohol related offense will count for the purpose of determining suspension length, including only possessing alcohol and not driving at the time.

DUI Penalties

  • First offense 60 days
  • Second offense 90 days
  • Third offense 180 days

In addition to jail time and license suspension, you could also be fined up to $500 an expensive night out all around.

BAC Limits

When it comes to BAC levels, the state limits are below:

  • 21 years old or older: .08%
  • Commercial drivers: .04%
  • Younger than 21 years old: Any detectable amount

Know that the effect alcohol can have on you can be based on the number of factors, including the number of drinks you’ve had, your body weight, what and if you ate before drinking, and even your gender. Additionally, mixing alcohol with any medications could be catastrophic. Our Houston DWI lawyer understands all of these limits.

Finally, the type of alcohol you drink also makes a difference. While beer can most certainly impair your driving, even small amounts of hard liquor can do so. The number of drinks, the faster you drink them, along with the factors mentioned above will all have an impact on how impaired you become as a result of consuming alcohol.

The problem is, you may also lose the ability to recognize just how impaired you really are. While most people know that higher concentrations of alcohol in the blood results in poor muscle coordination and balance, slurred speech and vision, slower reaction time, and impairments in judgment, self-control, and reasoning, research shows that even legal limits of alcohol can have some of these effects on those who consume alcohol.

For example:

At .05% BAC you May Display:

  • Exaggerated behavior
  • Alteration in consciousness
  • Lowered inhibition
  • Reduction in coordination
  • Reduced inability to track moving objects
  • Impaired ability to respond to emergency situations

At .02% BAC you May Display:

  • Altered mood
  • Relaxed muscle tone
  • Decline in visual function
  • Lowered ability to perform dual tasks
  • Some loss of judgment

Call the Office of Paul Darrow Today

If you have been charged with a DUI, you need help fast. Call the office of Darrow Law Firm P.C. today. A good attorney can make all the difference in the outcome of your case. Paul Darrow is a former prosecutor who understands how the systems works. He brings a wealth of experience to his law practice and knows how to get results for those he is defending and knows how to get results for his clients.