Driving While Impaired (DWI)

North Carolina DWI laws are some of the toughest in the country. If you have been arrested for DWI in North Carolina, it is critical that you contact Christopher & Page, PA immediately to get informed on your rights and options pertaining to your charge.

In 2007 North Carolina’s DWI law became stricter in response to the stance of the courts and law enforcement towards those suspected of drinking and driving in our state.

Drunk driving defense is a specialized area. Let Christopher & Page, PA find a solution to your legal problem if you, or someone you care about, has been arrested for DWI.

North Carolina General Statutes 20-138.1 and 20-16 primarily govern North Carolina DWI law. North Carolina DWI law includes both a traditional driving while impaired charge, and a per se charge. Typically, when someone is arrested for DWI or a related North Carolina drunk driving charge, they will confront both charges.

North Carolina DWI law, for purposes of the traditional driving while impaired charge, relates to "appreciable impairment" while driving. This count does not depend on a particular blood alcohol level, such as North Carolina’s per se law, which relates to a blood or breath alcohol level of .08% or higher. The prosecutor will attempt to prove the traditional North Carolina DWI charge by demonstrating appreciable impairment through the suspect’s driving, their physical appearance, their performance on field sobriety tests and the chemical test results.

North Carolina DWI law for the "per se" charge doesn’t care about how the individual was driving, how they appeared, how well or poorly they did on field sobriety tests, or anything else other than the chemical test results. For purposes of the North Carolina per se laws, the primary issue relates to blood or breath alcohol levels of .08% or higher.

Recent amendments to North Carolina DWI laws include laws that:

• Strengthens the open container law to prohibit anyone in motor vehicle from having open containers of beer or wine while in a public vehicular area.
• Strengthens the ignition-interlock requirement so that an offender will be required to have the alcohol-sensing device installed not just in his or her primary vehicle, but all vehicle registered in their name.
• Establishes a blood alcohol content of 0.04 for those who have been convicted of a DWI and have had their license reinstated.
• Establishes a blood alcohol content of 0.00 for those who have been convicted of a second DWI and have had their license reinstated.
• Requires those who are convicted of having a blood alcohol level of .15 or greater to use an ignition interlock system in their vehicles before their license is restored.

In addition, North Carolina can seize the vehicle of a driver whose license is revoked by another state, if the revocation is for an offense that is "substantially" similar to one — if committed in North Carolina — would make the vehicle subject to seizure. This would apply to a DWI violation charged to an out-of-state driver whose license has been revoked for a previous DWI.

North Carolina DWI convictions fall within a system of variable punishments depending on mitigating, aggravating factors, and grossly aggravating factors, relating both to the DWI driver’s prior offenses and the facts relating the present offense.

Because of the variables and possible punishments, it is critical to contact Christopher & Page, PA, if you or someone you know has been arrested for drunk driving. We can give you an assessment of your case including any aggravating, grossly aggravating or mitigating factors that might be present