DUI in the state of Nevada is considered to be a serious criminal offence. If you are pulled over and arrested for this, there are strict penalties you could face, even for a first time offence.
If a police officer in Nevada suspects you are driving under the influence, he will signal for you to pull over. Initially, you will be asked to submit to field sobriety tests. These include such things as walking in a straight line and other tests designed to show whether you have any signs of impairment. If you refuse to submit to these field sobriety tests, which you are allowed to do, then the officer may request you submit to a chemical test.
The chemical test would be a breathalyzer test and enables the police officer to measure your Blood Alcohol Content. If you have a BAC of .08%, this is considered illegal and you would be charged with DUI. Even if your BAC is lower than .08%, the officer may still arrest you if, by his judgment, you are showing signs that you’re driving impaired by alcohol. Nevada operates an Implied Consent law, whereby anyone who owns a Nevada driving licence consents to their BAC being tested if there are suspicions of them being guilty of a DUI offence.
If you refuse the test or fail the test, you are breaking Nevada state law. When this happens, the arresting officer will revoke your licence and give you a temporary licence that lasts for 7 days from the date of arrest.
If you are found guilty of a DUI offence in Nevada for the first time, the penalties are still severe.
These include jail time of 2 days to 6 months, fines of anything from $400 to $1000, possible vehicle revocation of 90 days (this won’t begin until you have been released from and jail time), attendance at DUI School at your own expense and possible alcohol treatment approved by the Nevada Health Division.
There are alternatives that the court could choose instead of the above. For instance, rather than jail time, the judge may order you to serve 96 hours of community service. With regards to fines, the court may decide to sentence you to more time in jail rather than fining you. After 45 days, you be allowed a restricted licence. This would mean that you could drive your vehicle 10 hours a day, 6 days a week and only for journeys to and from work. An ignition interlock device at your expense may have to be installed as part of restricted licence agreement.
If you are a commercial driver of a bus or a truck of some description, the legal BAC level is much lower. If you are tested with a BAC of 0.04%, you could face DUI charges. Your licence will be revoked if there is any trace of alcohol in your blood. If you are under 21 years of age, the level is lower still; if you have a BAC of anything between 0.02% and 0.08%, you could face DUI charges. If you are driving a vehicle with a minor in the car, your penalties will be greatly enhanced.
We can see that the state of Nevada, like the rest of America, treats DUI offences very seriously. This is why it is important to be aware of Nevada DUI laws and the consequences of violating them.
