It is not against the law to drink and drive in the State of Illinois. Unlike countries like the Czech Republic and Hungary, Illinois does not have a zero-tolerance law. No alcohol is allowed in your system at all in those countries. In Illinois, you can have wine with dinner or beer or two with your friends and not violate the law by driving home. What is illegal in Illinois is driving under the influence of alcohol. One way you can be charged for being under the influence of alcohol is blowing over a .08 BAC.
If you were arrested for driving under the influence (DUI) in Illinois and blow exactly a .08, the charges likely stem from your blood alcohol concentration (BAC) as measured by a chemical test. Whether police obtained your BAC through a blood, breath, or urine test, this method of proving a drunk driving case is among the most reliable. BAC test results are backed by science, so you might expect that your chances of successfully fighting a DUI arrest are limited. However, it is important to understand the concept of a BAC and why it is important to drunk driving charges because the law requires that you be .08 or above AT THE TIME the officer stops you for the offense.
Overview of BAC in Illinois Drunk Driving Cases
Under Illinois DUI laws, there are two ways you can be arrested for DUI. The first, impairment, relates to your physical and cognitive abilities. The second is having a concentration of alcohol in your blood that exceeds .08%. Police may conduct any type of chemical test to determine your BAC, including a breathalyzer, blood test, or urinalysis. If the results show a BAC of .08% or more, you can immediately be arrested for drunk driving. Plus, these test results can also be used as evidence against you in court.
Physical Effects of Various BAC Levels
Alcohol has multiple effects for your body, depending on how much you consume. Men metabolize alcohol at the rate of about .02 per hour. Women metabolize alcohol at about .018 per hour. It’s a bit like pouring liquid into a funnel with a defined aperture. You can keep pouring liquid in at any rate you want. The level of liquid will get higher and higher, but it will only be metabolized from the body at a stable rate. If your rate of intake exceeds your rate of metabolization, your BAC will go up.
To compare BAC and physical manifestations:
- From .02 to .05%: Both the brain and body are affected, as you start to feel relaxed, and a little warmer. Your gestures become more exaggerated and you talk loudly, non-stop. You will also begin to lose control over certain functions, like focusing on objects.
- At .08%: At the legal limit, you lose coordination and balance. Your speech becomes slurred, and your reaction time is longer. Reasoning and self-control are limited.
- Between 1-1.5%: You may be visibly drunk and stumbling, and unable to make decisions.
- Generally, a blow above 1.5 indicates someone who is consistently abusing alcohol and has an increased tolerance to consuming large amounts of it on a regular basis.
Factors That Affect BAC
The amount of alcohol in your blood also depends a number of factors, such as:
- Gender: Women will generally register a higher BAC more quickly than men of the same weight and age, due to differences in body water content. Plus, females have lower levels of enzymes in their stomachs, leading to breaking down alcohol more slowly.
- Time: The time you had your last drink plays into what your accurate BAC was at the time the officer stopped you. Alcohol takes time to be absorbed by the body. Finishing your last drink right before you leave the party and being stopped 2 blocks from your house may not have been enough time for the alcohol to be absorbed into your body and effect your reaction times. Thus the .081 you blew at the station an hour after the arrest may not be an accurate reflection or your state at the time the officer arrested you.
- Weight: The ratio of fat to muscle has an impact on BAC. Fat tissue cannot absorb alcohol as quickly as muscle, so it remains in the bloodstream longer and will register in a BAC test.
- Age: The human body’s systems slow somewhat with age. The older you get, the more time it takes for your liver to metabolize alcohol. It remains in your bloodstream until the liver can access and process it.
Though your BAC can carry a lot of weight in an Illinois DUI case, there are ways to contest the test results. An experienced DUI attorney can help, so please contact Glasgow & Olsson to learn about our legal services in drunk driving cases. You can reach our office and schedule a consultation by calling 847.577.8700 or visiting us online. We represent clients in DuPage, McHenry, Cook, and Lake Counties, and we look forward to working with you.
(image courtesy of Robert Mathews)