In New Jersey, most drivers have to abide by a legal limit of 0.08%. When a police officer gives the driver a breath test, their blood alcohol concentration (BAC) should be below this level. If it’s not, they can be arrested and the court can presume that they were impaired behind the wheel.
But this isn’t true for commercial drivers. They have a lower legal limit of 0.04%. This is a significant difference that means a driver could exceed the legal limit even when they don’t think they have consumed that much alcohol. But if they have a CDL, they need to know that they have strict regulations to follow, and it is easier for them to be arrested on impaired driving charges.
Are there any defense options?
Yes, there are always defense options when accused of drunk driving. One example is that the breath test itself may have been inaccurate. Say that the police officer made mistakes administering the test or failed to do the proper maintenance and calibration on the device. Maybe it gave a false positive or a reading that was artificially too high.
You may also want to consider procedural issues that impact the case. Did the police officer actually have reasonable suspicion to stop your vehicle? If they violated your rights in some way, then you may be able to claim that you never should have been arrested in the first place.
Every case is unique, of course, but a drunk driving arrest is a serious issue for a commercial driver, who could lose their career as a result. If you are in this position, you need to know about all of your defense options.
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