{"id":4608,"date":"2023-07-24T14:05:00","date_gmt":"2023-07-24T21:05:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vernfonk.com\/blog\/?p=4608"},"modified":"2023-07-21T14:05:44","modified_gmt":"2023-07-21T21:05:44","slug":"excuses-that-wont-let-you-escape-washington-state-dui-laws","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vernfonk.com\/blog\/car-insurance\/excuses-that-wont-let-you-escape-washington-state-dui-laws\/","title":{"rendered":"Excuses That Won\u2019t Let You Escape Washington State DUI Laws"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s the worst that could happen?\u201d<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Those are your thoughts as you celebrate (whatever) at the bar or party, and one drink turns into three\u2026or four…or\u2026 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You\u2019re not thinking about having to find affordable SR-22 insurance<\/a> at this point. You\u2019re convinced you\u2019ll get home without any issues. Or be able to talk yourself out of trouble if you should see flickering lights in your rearview mirror, followed by a Washington cop asking you to roll your window down. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

How well will that work? Let\u2019s try out a few \u201cget out of jail free\u201d excuses and see how they\u2019re likely to go down. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI Only Had One or Two\u201d<\/strong> <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019re sure your friendly Washington cop has never heard that<\/em> one before. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But seriously, the number of drinks you consume over a period of time doesn\u2019t really matter. What matters is your blood-alcohol content<\/a>, or BAC, at the time you\u2019re stopped. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You might have been pulled over because you were speeding, driving too slowly, or changing lanes without signaling. Maybe you were weaving, ran a red light, had a taillight out, or got trapped at a late-night checkpoint, or\u2026 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The point is that you might have been stopped for innocent reasons or because you drove in such a way that indicated to a trained officer that you might<\/em> be under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Once stopped, your officer could get additional clues such as slurred speech, unfocused eyes, a strong smell of alcohol, or even open bottles in plain sight in your vehicle. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whatever it is that raises concerns, the police officer can ask you to take field sobriety tests. This could mean asking you to stand on one leg, to walk and turn in such a way that tests your reflexes, or a brief eye test to show whether your gaze is tracking. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A failure of any or all of those tests will probably result in the officer asking you to take a Breathalyzer test. As in most U.S. states, a BAC reading of just 0.08 is considered evidence of driving under the influence. (A BAC of an even lower 0.04 will get you arrested if you\u2019re driving a commercial vehicle such as a semi or school bus.) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, it doesn\u2019t really matter how many drinks you had (or insist you had). Your body size, whether you drank on a full or empty stomach, the length of time over which you drank, and numerous other factors determine your BAC when you\u2019re stopped. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m Almost Home\u201d<\/strong> <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Maybe you can even point out your house or apartment building and tell the officer that your car is practically in your driveway or parking lot. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This, after all, is why you were so confident to take that extra drink (or three) at the neighborhood bar \u2014 because it\u2019s the neighborhood<\/em> bar, dude! It\u2019s just four blocks from home. The only reason you didn\u2019t walk there was because it was raining. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Go ahead \u2014 give your police officer as much of that explanation as you can before they cut you off and politely ask you to pass some field sobriety tests. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You see, if you\u2019re behind the wheel on a public road with a BAC of .08 or more, you\u2019re subject to Washington DUI laws. Period. It makes no difference if you\u2019re 30 miles from home or can see the lamp on in your living room. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMaybe We Can Work Something Out\u201d<\/strong> <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Please tell us you\u2019re not<\/em> going there. Because the penalty for bribing \u2014 or trying to bribe \u2014 a cop in Washington state can include stiffer fines and a longer jail term even than the normal consequences for drunk driving. In other words, you\u2019re about to make a bad situation worse. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy Dad Will Have Your Job for This\u201d<\/strong> <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Alternate expressions of this threat start with the words, \u201cMy husband,\u201d \u201cMy wife,\u201d \u201cMy brother-in-law,\u201d or some other significant figure in your life with enough juice that it should make all cops quake in their cop shoes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It won\u2019t.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Photo<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s What to Say Instead When Facing the Consequences of Drunk Driving<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

As little as possible. Be courteous and do as directed. Avoid getting into additional trouble by arguing or trying to negotiate with the arresting officer. Save your conversation for a lawyer who specializes in DUI offenses<\/a> and can recommend legal defense strategies that might minimize the consequences of drunk driving. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

At some point, you\u2019ll need to obtain SR-22 insurance in order to get back on the road after your license is suspended. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhat the <\/strong>Bleep<\/em><\/strong> is SR-22 Insurance?\u201d<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Now that\u2019s a good question. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s not actually insurance at all, though it commonly gets called that. An SR-22 is actually paperwork submitted to the state by your car insurance company<\/a> that certifies that you\u2019ve obtained at least the legal minimum amount of coverage required once you\u2019re allowed to drive again after your DUI conviction. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Washington state \u2014 as well as in a vast number of U.S. states \u2014 you must have SR-22 insurance to drive if the court has made it a legal requirement. Or the penalties go up. That\u2019s why your auto insurance agent should be the next person you call after your DUI lawyer has worked out legal defense strategies that allow you to drive again. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your insurance agent can fully explain how to get affordable SR-22 insurance certification<\/a>. If you\u2019re dealing with an independent<\/em> auto insurance agent, they\u2019ll be able to get cost quotes from many major insurance carriers to find the cheapest SR-22 coverage available. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contact Us (After You Call Your Lawyer) for Affordable SR-22 Insurance in Washington<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A DUI conviction is serious business in Washington state. Don\u2019t make your situation worse by saying the wrong thing. In fact, say very little, but stay courteous when you get stopped for driving after consuming drugs or alcohol. Then call a DUI lawyer as soon as possible. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your next official call should be to an independent Vern Fonk Insurance agent. We\u2019ve helped countless Washington drivers submit their certification and get affordable SR-22 insurance. Call us at (800) 455-8276<\/a> or get a quick online quote<\/a>. You can also find a helpful Vern Fonk agent at a Washington state office near you<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cWhat\u2019s the worst that could happen?\u201d  Those are your thoughts as you celebrate (whatever) at the bar or party, and one drink turns into three\u2026or four…or\u2026  You\u2019re not thinking about having to find affordable SR-22 insurance at this point. You\u2019re convinced you\u2019ll get home without any issues. Or be able to talk yourself out of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4609,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[31,39],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4608","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-car-insurance","category-dui"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vernfonk.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4608","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vernfonk.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vernfonk.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vernfonk.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vernfonk.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4608"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.vernfonk.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4608\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4611,"href":"https:\/\/www.vernfonk.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4608\/revisions\/4611"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vernfonk.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4609"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vernfonk.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4608"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vernfonk.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4608"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vernfonk.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4608"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}