Forsyth County, NC DUI/DWI Law Blog

The law of North Carolina prohibits open containers of alcohol in the passenger area of a vehicle on the highway. The passenger area is defined as the driver and passenger seats and any space within the reach of the driver or passenger. The definition does not include the trunk of a car or the area behind the last row of seats or the bed of a truck. However, it does include the glove compartment. An open container means one that has had the seal broken.

An 84-year-old man is facing several charges, including having an open container, DWI and felony serious injury with motor vehicle, after he was involved in an accident. The elderly man was driving a van on Highway 17 in Pender County. According to police, the man attempted to make a turn but drove through the median and hit a motorcycle that was stopped at a red light.

Under the law of North Carolina, a driver consents to submitting to a breath test just by driving in the state. This is known as the implied consent law. If a person is stopped by police under suspicion of drunk driving and refuses to take a breath test, he will automatically face a license suspension of 30 days and may lose his license for a year, just for refusing a breath test.

Officers may obtain a warrant to obtain a blood sample from the suspected drunk driver. The law of North Carolina also allowed an officer to require a suspect to submit to a blood test without the suspect's consent if the officer believed the suspect was impaired and the alcohol would dissipate from his blood before a warrant could be obtained.

If a driver is suspected of drunk driving and stopped by police, the driver will often be given a breathalyzer test to determine if his BAC level if above the legal limit. If the driver passes the breathalyzer test, he may also be given a blood test to look for the presence of drugs. If both tests come back clear, then the driver should expect to be free from DWI charges, regardless of the results of the Field Sobriety Tests.

However, a North Carolina woman is facing DWI charges after she was involved in a wreck. The woman passed a breathalyzer test but failed a field sobriety test. On February 4, the woman crashed into another vehicle after making what police called an unsafe movement. The woman has little memory of the crash; she said the last thing she can remember is her airbag deploying and then she awoke in the ambulance.

In addition to charges of driving while intoxicated, there are several other ways a driver in North Carolina may lose his license. For example, accumulating 12 or more points on a drivers license can result in a 60-day license suspension. If a driver is going 15 mph above the speed limit at a rate over 55 mph, then that driver may also have his license suspended for a minimum period of 30 days. Additionally, a one-year Drivers License Suspension will result if a driver receives two charges of reckless driving within a year.

A Charlotte man who had his license previously revoked is now facing several charges after he was involved in a wreck in Hickory. The man was traveling southbound on N.C. 127 when his vehicle crossed over the yellow line and struck another vehicle head-on.