I recently acted for a client who was charged with DUI Drink Driving for being in control of a golf cart, whilst having a Blood Alcohol Concentration of 0.187.
The client faced a potential lifetime loss of licence.
Unfortunately, as he was high range (over 0.149), he was not eligible for a work licence.
Accordingly, my job was to get the disqualification down as low as possible.
Many motorist are of the incorrect assumption that to be charged with Drink Driving you need to be a) actually driving; b) driving a road going vehicle; and c) driving on a road.
In Charge of a Motor Vehicle
The offence of Drink Driving these days is effectively an old wive’s tale.
What people actually get convicted of now is being ‘in charge’ of a motor vehicle with a Blood Alcohol Content of 0.05 or over.
This means that you do not have to be actually driving to be charged with DUI.
In fact, you do not even need to be conscious or in the driver’s seat.
The definition is now so broad that you can be asleep in the tray of a ute, and still deemed to be ‘in charge’ of your motor vehicle, if you simply have the keys in your possession.
By in your possession, I don’t mean on your person, I mean somewhere in the vehicle.
So you can be asleep on the bonnet of your car, with the keys in the glovebox, and still be found to be ‘in charge’ of your vehicle.
Road Going Vehicle
Now, whilst some of you may have seen Johnny Knoxville on television doing crazy stunts in a golf cart, most of us would never have seen anyone trying to drive one down the M1.
Accordingly, you could be excused for assuming that a golf cart is not actually a ‘vehicle’.
However, like the definition of ‘in charge’, the legal definition of vehicle has now become so broad that literally any self-propelled device is considered to be a vehicle for the purposes of the Drink Driving laws.
Further to this, the ‘self-propelled’ element has been widened to include anything capable of being propelled, such as a push bike.
So what this means is, you can now be successfully convicted of DUI in a golf cart, a ride-on lawnmower, a motorised skateboard, or even a horse.
Road
Many people also assume that unless they are driving on an actual road, such as a drive way or any other form of private property, they again are not actually DUI.
The legal definition of road is now so broad that it encompasses any road or ‘road related area’.
Road related area literally means any part of the surface of the earth which can be driven upon without obstruction.
In other words, a road is any drivable piece of ground up to a publicly impassable locked gate.
So yes, you can be convicted of DUI in a golf cart on a golf course fairway, even if you are asleep in the caddy’s seat
I achieved the Mandatory Minimum disqualification for my client.
Why not check out the following epsiodes of our YouTube show 'Wiseman Lawyers Ride Alongs':
- Careless Driving | Rockhampton Magistrates Court
- Unlicensed Driving | Normanton Magistrates Court
- Drink Driving | Blackwater Magistrates Court
Queenslanders charged with DUI Drink Driving, Drug Driving or Fail To Provide Specimen face a maximum penalty of a lifetime driver’s licence disqualification, 9 months imprisonment and 28 penalty units.
Persons charged with Careless Driving (Drive Without Due Care & Attention) face a maximum penalty of a lifetime driver’s licence disqualification, 6 months imprisonment and 40 penalty units.
Queenslanders charged with Dangerous Driving, which is a Criminal offence, face a maximum penalty, depending upon the circumstances of aggravation, of 5 years imprisonment, 200 penalty units and a lifetime driver’s licence disqualification.
Persons charged with Disqualified Driving face a maximum penalty of a lifetime driver’s licence disqualification, 12 months imprisonment and 40 penalty units.
Queenslanders charged with Evade Police a maximum penalty of 3 years imprisonment, 200 penalty units and a lifetime licence disqualification.
Persons charged with Repeat DUI Drink Driving, Repeat Drug Driving, Repeat Fail To Provide Specimen, or a Repeat combination of these offences, face a maximum penalty of a lifetime driver’s licence disqualification, 18 months imprisonment and 60 penalty units.
A penalty unit in Queensland is currently worth $113.85.
In addition to the above penalties, anyone who pleads or is found guilty in the Magistrates Court must pay the Offender Levy, which is presently worth $110.90.
Magistrates have a general power to impose up to a lifetime driver’s licence disqualification, above and beyond any legislated disqualification ranges.
Wiseman Lawyers specialise in DUI Drink Driving, Drug Driving, Careless & Dangerous Driving, Evade Police and Drug, Alcohol & Traffic offences.