Fighting For My Reputation

You Can Be Charged With Driving While Intoxicated With Caffeine Being The Culprit

15 May 2017

Luke Warren

Some people swear that they cannot begin a day without drinking a cup of coffee. That first cup of coffee often leads to more cups of coffee throughout the day. Coffee connoisseurs say that coffee keeps them going as they begin their activities of daily living. However, coffee contains caffeine, which is a drug. While it is rare, you can potentially be charged by an officer for driving while intoxicated with caffeine being the culprit.

You Must Agree To a Field Sobriety Test

If you're driving your vehicle in a suspicious way and an officer pulls you over, the officer has the right to perform a field sobriety test, and you could be charged with driving while impaired, intoxicated, or under the influence as charges go. First you have to understand what coffee is before tackling the subject of why you can be arrested and charged with driving while impaired (DWI).

Caffeine Is a Drug

Caffeine is derived from crushed or ground coffee beans. What you may not know is that caffeine is a naturally occurring chemical stimulant that affects your central nervous system (CNS). Your CNS is a portion of your vertebrate nervous system that consists of your brain and spinal cord. Since caffeine is a drug, it does share many similarities with cocaine, heroin, and amphetamines. Too much caffeine thus serves to alter your brain's thinking capacity, and that's the bad news about driving under the influence of caffeine.

Why Is The DWI Law So Harsh?

Driving while intoxicated laws are created to prevent people with impairments from endangering you as a careful driver. Since coffee is a drug, its penalties should be just as serious as intoxication by drugs or alcohol. So you should avoid having an overabundance of caffeine in your body while driving or you'll fail DWI tests.

Consequence Of Failing DWI Tests

If you fail the sobriety test that an officer performs, you'll be asked to perform the walk-and-turn test. The officer also may request that you perform the one-leg-stand test. Should you fail all the tests, you can be legally charged with a DWI offense. You should hire an experienced DWI attorney who is a seasoned courtroom lawyer to represent you and argue your case in court.

Using Smart Technology to Guide Your Driving Decisions

You may instinctively know when you've had too much coffee to the point that it affects your driving ability. There are applications that you can use on your smart phone to help with estimating your ability to drive, including a blood alcohol calculator (BAC). The calculator tracks how many drinks you've had and also tells you what your estimated BAC is. You can then make a decision as to when you should not drive.

Share