Remaining calm during a traffic stop is never easy. This is especially true if you have just had a couple of drinks and you are not sure if your blood alcohol content (BAC) level exceeds the legal limit. If you are pulled over for drunk driving, it is in your best...
Think the BAC limit is 0.08%? Maybe not
One assumption that a lot of drivers make is that the limit for blood-alcohol concentration is a BAC of 0.08%. This is often just referred to as the “legal limit.” It indicates the amount of alcohol you can have in your system while operating a motor vehicle. It is...
What is an aggravated DUI?
An aggravated DUI is more than an ordinary drunk driving charge. Since most criminal cases consider the circumstances surrounding the offense, aggravating factors make them more serious. It means that an aggravated DUI charge carries stiffer penalties. Below are some...
Why you’ll fail the horizontal gaze nystagmus eye test
If you’re suspected of driving while intoxicated, you may be asked to take one or more “field sobriety tests.” Police officers use these to determine whether or not they have enough reasonable suspicion to ask for a chemical breath test. One of these is the horizontal...
What are the IID requirements after a DWI in New Mexico?
Accusations of drunk driving come with numerous consequences in New Mexico. Drivers who plead guilty or get convicted might have to serve a period of incarceration or endure state monitoring via probation. They will also have to pay fines to the state. Impaired...
What are New Mexico’s DWI laws?
Every state has slightly different laws when it comes to driving while intoxicated. DWI infractions occur when a driver has a breath or blood alcohol test above the legal limit of that state. In New Mexico, drivers cannot have a breath or blood alcohol concentration...
Can you get a DUI from a legal medication?
In New Mexico, as well as elsewhere in the United States, it is possible to get a DUI due to being impaired by a substance other than an illicit drug or alcohol. Even prescription medications can cause DUIs. It’s not just prescription medications, either....
If you refuse a Breathalyzer test, will you lose your license?
If you decide to refuse a Breathalyzer test after a traffic stop, you should know that the decision to do so many seriously affect your future. Your license will be suspended if you don't take the test because you violated the implied consent law. While some people...
What kinds of illnesses mimic intoxication?
Alcohol intoxication makes people’s bodies respond in different ways. Depending on how much they’ve had to drink, they may feel impaired or totally fine. Some may have slower reaction times. Others may realize that they have a change in their attitude or actions. If...
The death toll caused by drunk driving
A significant decrease in drunk driving fatalities happened over the last several years in New Mexico. But there is still much work that to do in this area. Driving a motor vehicle while under the influence of drugs or alcohol is a criminal offense that can bring...
