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Georgia DUI Law Overview

Georgia DUI Law

Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs (commonly referred to as "DUI") is a very serious offense in Georgia. A week doesn't go by where we do not read in our newspapers about the tragic loss of a life caused by an alleged intoxicated driver who has been involved in an accident. As a consequence of these deadly accidents, there has been a tremendous public ground swell of support for legislative changes in the DUI laws from groups such as Mothers Against Drunk Drivers (MADD) and Students Against Drunk Drivers (SADD).

This has resulted in our Georgia lawmakers passing legislation that has made the penalties for a DUI conviction extremely harsh, especially for those individuals who have a second or third (or more) conviction for DUI within a five-year period of time, as measured from the date of the previous arrest for DUI which resulted in a DUI conviction to the date of the arrest of the present offense. Even a first time offender, if that person's blood alcohol concentration at the time of the offense was 0.08 grams or more, is facing a mandatory period of at least 24 hours in jail, placement on probation for 12 months, payment of a fine of up to $1,000.00, performance of at least 40 hours of community service, suspension of his/her Georgia driver's license and attendance at DUI school.

Make the law work for you — contact our Atlanta, Georgia, office location today for a free consultation.

At The Law Offices of Howard J. Weintraub, P.C., we represent people in the Atlanta metro area and throughout Georgia who have been arrested on DUI charges.

In Georgia, there are six ways in which a person can be convicted of DUI. The most frequently used method is often termed the per se aspect of the Georgia law. Under this prosecution, Georgia law prohibits a person from driving, or being in actual physical control of any moving vehicle, while that person's blood alcohol concentration is 0.08 or more at any time within three hours after that person's driving of the vehicle has ended, or within three hours after that person's physical control of the vehicle has ended.

Another method used to convict drivers of DUI is for the prosecutor to show beyond a reasonable doubt that alcohol and/or other substances had caused the driver to be less safe. In this aspect of the law, Georgia prohibits a person from driving, or being in actual physical control of any moving vehicle, while that person is under the influence of alcohol to such an extent that the alcohol has made it less safe for that person to drive. Georgia law also prohibits a person from driving, or being in actual physical control of any motor vehicle, while that person is under the influence of any drug (including legally prescribed medicines or over-the-counter medicines, such as cold remedies) to such an extent that the drug has made it less safe for that person to drive. Georgia law also prohibits a person from driving, or being in actual physical control of any motor vehicle, while that person is under the intentional influence of any glue, aerosol or other toxic vapor to such an extent that the substance has made it less safe for that person to drive. Also, a combined influence of any two or more of these substances is prohibited if such combination has made it less safe for a person to drive.

The sixth method of potential DUI prosecution in Georgia involves a provision of Georgia law that prohibits a person from driving, or being in actual physical control of any moving vehicle, while there is any amount of a controlled substance in that person's blood or urine, without regard to whether or not any alcohol is present in the person's breath or blood and without regard to whether such controlled substance made it less safe for that person to drive.

In addition to these common violations, our office also handles cases of teenage drunk drivers, commercial truck drivers and various administrative license suspension issues. For further information, please see the following pages:

Former Assistant United States Attorney
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The most common mistake people make after a DUI arrest is to wait too long to speak with a lawyer.

Call our law offices in Atlanta, Georgia, or contact us directly online for a free consultation. Our telephones are answered 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, which means that your message will reach us and will be returned as soon as possible. Major credit cards are accepted.

The Law Offices of Howard J. Weintraub, P.C. in Atlanta, Georgia, provides experienced state and federal criminal defense representation to individuals throughout Georgia, including those from Cherokee County, Cobb County, Dawson County, DeKalb County, Forsyth County, Fulton County, Gwinnett County and Hall County, and from cities and communities such as Acworth, Alpharetta, Atlanta, Austell, Avondale Estates, Buckhead, Buford, Canton, Chamblee, Clarkston, College Park, Conyers, Cumming, Decatur, Doraville, Duluth, Dunwoody, East Point, Gainesville, Holly Springs, Johns Creek, Kennesaw, Lawrenceville, Lilburn, Mableton, Marietta, McDonough, Midtown, Milton, Newnan, Norcross, Roswell, Powder Springs, Sandy Springs, Smyrna, Snellville, Stone Mountain, Suwanee, Tucker, Union City and Woodstock.