Were you charged with aggravated DUI?

There have probably been many Fridays where you spent most of your time at work looking forward to evenings and weekends ahead with friends. There’s nothing quite like kicking back and enjoying a nice relaxing night out after a week of long hours and hard work. Perhaps your plans sometimes include taking in a movie or going to one of Colorado’s fabulous nightspots. Good food, music and special friends can add up to an evening you won’t soon forget.

Of course, there’s always a possibility things won’t go as planned; police pulling you over for DUI would definitely be one example. To avoid such problems, it’s obviously best not to consume alcohol if you plan to operate a motor vehicle at some point during your night on the town. Knowing the specific DUI laws for this state can also help you make informed decisions.

Zero tolerance, aggravated DUI and other jargon

Terminology used to define drunk driving laws can be confusing and difficult to understand if you have no background in law and have never run into trouble in this area in the past. Drunk driving laws vary by state. Below are basic explanations of Colorado regulations:

• BAC: When you see these letters listed in conjunction with drunk driving, they typically stand for blood alcohol content. This is a measurement of the amount of alcohol detected in a person’s bloodstream.
• Per se: (Pronounced: per-say) This state operates on a per se law, which means anyone registering a BAC of .08 is considered intoxicated and prohibited from operating a motor vehicle.
• Zero tolerance: If you’re under age 21 and your BAC is .02 or higher, the court may convict you of intoxicated driving and subject you to severe penalties.
• Aggravated DUI: If the court determines that a person’s blood alcohol content level was .17 or higher, penalties under conviction are more severe than those incurred for lower BAC levels.

Besides ruining your weekend, facing DUI charges can have extremely negative, long-lasting consequences on your life. Even before the court hands down a ruling in your situation, your job may be at stake because many employers don’t take kindly to employees repeatedly calling off work to attend court hearings. If the incident that led to your arrest involved a car accident and/or injury to another person, your personal freedom might be on the line. The outcomes of such situations often depend on several factors.

For one, the court typically pays close attention to whether police have charged you with similar crimes in the past. It also tends to help to act alongside aggressive defense representation in court. An experienced defense attorney knows which options to pursue to increase the chances of obtaining positive results and minimizing the long-term negative effects of a particular situation.