DUI Danger: The Impact of Driving Under the Influence
South Africa has a serious DUI problem. According to a 2015 survey put forth by the World Health Organization, it was revealed that the country has more drunk-driving related deaths than any other country in the world. This statistic arguably has inspired tougher DUI laws, and these laws can have a substantially negative impact on your life should you get arrested for the offence.
What Constitutes a DUI
It doesn’t take much for a driver to be considered under the influence. The legal blood alcohol limit in South Africa is less than 0.05 g per 100 ml. This essentially translates to two drinks over the space of one hour. Additionally, the legal breath alcohol limit in the country is less than .24 mg in 1000 ml of breath. Tait and Hall attorneys explain that it takes your body about one hour to process one unit of alcohol. Because alcoholic beverages have varying alcoholic content, the following list should be considered before going out for drinks:
- 1 75 ml glass of wine equals 1 unit
- 1 250 ml glass of wine equals 3.3 units
- 1 shot or shooter equals ½ unit in most instances
- 1 spirit cooler equals roughly 1.25 units
- 1 beer equals 1.5 units, potentially even more
- 1 cider equals 2 units
- 1 25 ml serving of spirits equals 1 unit
- 1 cocktail equates to around 2 and 4 units
The Impact of a DUI
There are severe consequences if you get arrested for a DUI. According to the South African Police Service, if you are determined to be over the legal limit, you will be held in custody until you can post bail. In certain cases, this chance for bail may be denied.
If you have prior convictions on your record, or if there are extraneous circumstances regarding your arrest, you may be subject to an R 2,000 fine or a two-year prison sentence. In certain cases, you may even be subject to both. Additionally, you may be in risk of losing your driver’s license or at the very least, having it suspended. Finally, you will also walk away from the incident with a criminal record.
Above all of this, you will also be personally subjected to having the specter of having a DUI associated with you for the rest of your life. The shame and guilt of having this association haunt you can be just as negatively impactful as all the other legal elements. Of course, there is one concrete way to prevent this from happening – simply don’t get behind the wheel after you’ve been drinking in the first place.