Baby DUI vs. Adult DUI: Differences and What You Can Be Charged With
March 1, 2021
Baby DUI
You can be charged with a “Baby DUI” if you drive after consuming alcohol when you are under the age of 21. A person with a blood alcohol content or BAC between .02 and .07 will be charged with a baby DUI if he is under the age of 21. Although this charge is described as a “baby,” that doesn’t mean that the criminal justice system will treat you leniently if you receive this charge.
A Baby DUI is a Class 1 Misdemeanor. Therefore, you are at risk of receiving a jail sentence of up to 12 months and a fine of up to $2,500. Your driver’s license would also be suspended for 12 months if convicted.
After a Conviction on a Baby DUI
After a conviction on this charge, the court will give you a choice between paying a $500 fine and completing a maximum amount of 50 hours of community service. This means that the mandatory minimum fine imposed for a Baby DUI is twice the minimum fine required of a first conviction on a DUI charge.
Often times people believe that they shouldn’t be charged with a DUI at all if their BAC levels were below .08. However, if they are under 21 they are charged with Baby DUI because Virginia has adopted a zero tolerance policy for those under the drinking age. It is against the law for someone under the age of 21 to ingest any amount of alcohol, so if you have a BAC between .02 and .07, you broke the law against drinking in Virginia.
Adult DUI
It is illegal to drive a motor vehicle with a BAC equal to or greater than .08 or if you are shown to be intoxicated by drugs, a combination of drugs and alcohol, or meet the legal definintion of intoxication. Likewise, this charge includes the consumption of alcohol and illicit drugs that impair the person’s ability to safely drive a motor vehicle.
If a motorist is under the age of 21, she may be charged with an adult DUI if her BAC is equal to .08 or higher.
If you have been charged with a Baby DUI, you should not shrug it off and not be concerned. You need to hire a Fairfax DUI lawyer as badly as you would need to hire an attorney if you were charged with a regular DUI. They take underage drinking very seriously in Virginia, so you do not want to think that Fairfax County DUI lawyers are not necessary.
If you are over the age of 21 and charged with a DUI, it is just as important for you to contact a Virginia criminal defense attorney. For a first offense, you are subject to receiving even harsher consequences. For example, along with the possibility of spending up to a year in jail, you will also be subject to a fine between $250 and $2,500. You may lose your license for one year and be required to install the ignition interlock device in your vehicle to obtain restricted privileges.
You need a criminal defense lawyer Fairfax VA to present a strong defense for you in court. You may have heard that some people charged with these offenses representing themselves in court to avoid paying the attorneys’ fees, but this isn’t a wise plan. A criminal defense attorney Fairfax VA has the experience and the training that an attorney needs in the courtroom. You do not have this training, so don’t jeopardize your ability to drive to work and because you want to save a few dollars.
Hire a Fairfax criminal attorney at Rudolphi Law today.