Minnesota DWI charges with a .07 BAC

In Minnesota, the legal drinking limit is .08. What that means is that if your blood alcohol is .08 or higher, you are legally intoxicated. I recently had a client with a blood alcohol concentration of .07, and she was charged with DWI.

In a case where the blood alcohol is .07, the state cannot offer the blood test to prove you are driving while intoxicated. The State at trial will rely on the police officer that made the arrest to testify as to illegall driving conduct, such as speed, crossing over fog and center lines, not using a turn signal, and his observations during the stop and the arest – blood shot eyes, slurred speech, unsteady on your feet. The state will also introduce any failed sobriety tests that the officer used.

In most of these cases, a plea bargain is available, but these cases are also very defensible. A colleague of mine taught me to use the arguement that driver arrested for DWI with a .07 BAC, “should get a thank you letter from the State. My client was responsible, and was not driving drunk.”

Whatever defense is suitable in your case, you should talk with a Minnesota DWI attorney prior to pleading guilty in your DWI case. Call Attorney John Scott for a consultation.

BWI: Boating While Intoxicated In MN

In the summer time, it is important that boaters remember that Minnesota’s DWI laws apply to boats as well. If you are operating a boat with a blood alcohol level over .08, you will be charged with BWI (boating while intoxicated).

 

Since it is usually a DNR agent that makes the stop and arrest, I am often asked if a DNR agent can give a person for a ticket for DWI. The answer is yes. Minnesota laws give authority to its DNR agents to enforce rules that pertain to Minnesota’s waterways, trails, and wildlife. So if a DNR agent is making a legal stop or investigation in the enforcement of those rules, the DNR agent does have authority to make an arrest.

 

People with a driver’s license restricting them from drinking alcohol (commonly known as the B-card), who drink alcohol on a boat can lose their driver’s license as a result of violating the restriction. This is important to remember because the rules pertaining to stops by DNR agents on the waterways are much more lax than rules applying to policemen on Minnesota roads.

 

As Minnesotans enjoy the summer on Minnesota’s lakes and waterways, it is important to abide by the DNR’s rules for operating water craft. To review the Minnesota DNR boating rules and regulations, click here.

 

If you have legal questions concerning a Minnesota BWI or boating incident, please call.

 

-John Scott

612-840-8961