Nebraska DUI BAC Legal Limits
The legal alcohol limit under Nebraska law for most people is .08 percent BAC (blood alcohol concentration). This includes most drivers 21 years of age or older as well as those who operate a boat or a motorboat. The .02 percent difference may not seem like much but a person who weighs 170 pounds would have to consume an extra 2.6 drinks (assuming 23 shots of liquor are consumed in an hour) and a man who normally has a BAC of .08 would be .10, a level that is considered drunk.
There are Nebraska DUI legal alcohol limits for commercial drivers and young drivers that are different. For commercial drivers, the legal limit in Nebraska is .04. For commercial drivers, the legal limit in Nebraska is .04. Commercial drivers also cannot be under the influence of alcohol to the extent that it affects the ability to safely operate a commercial motor vehicle. A BAC of more than .04 barely impairs an average driver’s performance , but to a commercial driver, a .04 blood alcohol concentration equals a conviction for driving under the influence.
On January 1, 2010 added to the list of people subject to the zero tolerance law were drivers under the age of 21. If a driver under the age of 21 has a BAC of .02 but less than .08, he/she will be charged with Minor in Possession. If a minor is convicted twice, he/she faces suspension or revocation of his/her driver’s license for six months. While this is not a criminal offense, it could have serious long-term consequences, such as affecting your ability to get a college scholarship, work on a college campus, and be accepted into graduate school.
Penalties for Driving Over the Legal BAC Limit
While the penalties vary slightly, it is illegal in Nebraska to have a blood alcohol content level above the state’s legal limits. Those who do can face a host of penalties, both legal and personal.
Legal Penalties
A DUI offense in Nebraska can result in several fines. For a first offense, fines range from at least $500 to as much as $1,000. First offenses also include an automatic six-month driver’s license suspension and the vehicle of the person driving under the influence will be impounded for at least 10 days. A second offense raises these fines to a minimum of $1,000 and as high as $1,000 while the license suspension will last one year.
A third offense results in a minimum $1,500 fine with a maximum of $25,000. This also includes an automatic 15-day vehicle impound as well as nine months of ignition interlock. If the person is convicted of a DUI for a fourth time, additional charges can be brought against them.
Those charged with or convicted of a DUI also incur the possibility of their auto insurance rates going up. If you cause an accident while intoxicated, you could be sued and have to hand over large sums of money to pay the damages and then your own bills to fix your vehicle. Driving with a suspended license also incurs additional fines. A driver who gets caught driving with a suspended license gets their license revoked for another year.
Personal Penalties
You might think that getting arrested is the worst thing that can happen because of an arrest for driving under the influence. While an arrest is certainly embarrassing and damaging to a person’s reputation, the social consequences that go along with it can be even worse. For an adult, this can mean losing your job if you drive for a living, or if you are a trusted manager, it could cost you your job or make it difficult to continue in your place of employment. If your friends or family members find out that you were driving under the influence, it might make it more challenging to hang out with them.
Factors That Impact BAC Levels
One of the primary factors that can influence an individual’s BAC levels is their body weight. Heavier individuals tend to absorb and eliminate alcohol more slowly than lighter individuals, which can cause some variability in BAC levels for every drink consumed. However, this factor tends to be relatively minor when all is said and done, and there are many other factors that have a much more significant effect on BAC.
Another variable that can affect BAC levels is the rate of alcohol consumption. If an individual is at a party and drinks a couple of beers over the course of an hour, they may not feel drunk even if they are above the legal limit. Consumption at that rate can actually be within the body’s ability to eliminate alcohol, so the effects are minimized. But if someone consumes that same amount in a single hour, they could cross the threshold for legal intoxication.
The consumption of food can also play a significant role in BAC levels. If a person drinks on an empty stomach, there are fewer factors acting to slow the absorption of alcohol into the body, which often leads to a sharp increase in BAC levels. Conversely, eating during or after consuming alcohol can slow the person’s absorption of alcohol, and in some cases even cause their BAC levels to shrink.
Finally, whether the individual is male or female can also influence BAC. Women, in general, experience a more profound effect from equivalent amounts of alcohol due to having less water in their body than men, which makes the ratio of alcohol to overall body fluid much higher.
Changes in body makeup over time can also influence BAC. A person may have a higher tolerance to alcohol as they age, which would result in a lesser effect from the same amount of alcohol.
Legal Consequences of Drinking Underage
It is illegal to possess alcohol under the age of 21. Minor in possession, or MIP, arrests can lead to criminal charges, but also administrative penalties issued by the Nebraska DMV. In Nebraska, if you are convicted on an MIP charge, then you will lose your driving privileges for 90 days.
Many people also recognize the word "minor" as meaning someone who is under 19 years of age, but under the law, it refers to anyone under 21. The first element of underage drinking charges is that the defendant must be under the legal drinking age, which is set as 21 years old in all U.S. states.
The second element in this crime is that the defendant must have possessed alcohol. "Possessed" means that you were in physical control of such a degree that you could exclude others from using the alcoholic beverage. For example, being drunk at a party is not enough for possession if you do not have a drink in hand or concealed on your person. Likewise, being in a bar, club, or restaurant when someone else drinks a minor in possession charge is a stretch — unless the authorities can prove that you requested the alcohol, sat down at the bar, and ordered it yourself. Just being in an establishment where someone is drinking is not a sufficient basis for a charge.
There is also a presumptive affirmative defense for falsely identifying your age, as long as you can prove this was an honest mistake, and that you’re more than 21. The law assumes most people know the law.
MIP charges are often applied to chemical tests that reveal the BAC or blood alcohol concentration level of .02 percent or higher.
Under the law, adults get an MIP charge based on the BAC level of .08 percent or higher. In other words, only those under 21 can be arrested for a level of . 02 or higher, though anyone who is under 21 is held to a standard where .02 is considered illegal.
There are distinct charges and penalties for those under 21 when it comes to DUI laws.
Drivers with BAC levels of .08 percent or more can face the regular DUI penalties. If you are 21 or older at the time of your arrest, you may have driving privileges suspended for six months, even if it’s your first offense.
If you are under 21, however, and you register only .02 on a breath test or other BAC test, you can face penalties which include a suspension of one year, regardless of whether you have a prior conviction. Moreover, if you are found guilty throughout the court proceedings, you can still incur the criminal penalties as well — at least in the second offense ranges.
The administrative penalties are as follows:
All of the penalties above increase when you receive multiple charges. Rather than six months for BAC levels over .08 percent, you can face two years if you are already a habitual offender, and third-time DUIs are classified as felonies, bringing harsher penalties.
One of the top charges is considered a Class W misdemeanor, with fines of up to $1,000. The fourth drunk driving offense in Nebraska incurs the same penalties as a Class IV felony. Fines can rise to $10,000 or more and you will have to spend up to five years in prison. That amount of time also represents ten years of driver’s license suspension.
Don’t take a drinking or drug charge lightly. MIP charges as well as DUI charges can lead to significant and lasting legal and professional consequences, limiting your travel, employment, and education. If you are convicted of any of these crimes, you will have a criminal record. Contact an experienced criminal defense attorney to discuss your case and learn more about the ARD program.
Drunk Driving Defenses in Nebraska
The burden of proof is a very important concept in drunk driving defense. The prosecution in a Nebraska DUI case has two burdens of proof: (1) prove the elements of drunk driving and/or having a BAC above the legal limit of .08; and (2) prove that the circumstances of your DUI stop were legal. Fortunately, every law enforcement encounter is able to be challenged to determine its legality. Many DUIs begin with an unlawful stop or detention. All driver must use turn signals and stop at stop signs, but this does not give law enforcement a right to investigate anyone merely for making a turn. A law enforcement officer cannot pull you over and investigate you for drunk driving unless they have reasonable suspicion it was a DUI based on the totality of the circumstances. This means that there must be more than merely having a drink before driving. Reasonable suspicion can be established by failing to stop at a stop sign, open container, spilling alcohol, speeding, or others. Almost all DUI arrests occur because of the roadside field sobriety tests. These roadside tests are voluntary, and some refuse to do them. The refusal to take the roadside test constitutes a refusal to submit to a chemical test under Neb. Rev. Stat. 60-498.02(3) and will lead to loss of license for a year. It does not lead to an acquittal of the drunk driving charges, since the test can be obtained at any time after an arrest. If those tests are administered, however, they are not done according to standards. They are not done according to national standards, anyway. Law enforcement officers are trained to give these tests, but they are given training by other police officers, not nationally recognized experts. Sometimes the tests are not given at all. These are illegal roadside searches, and can be challenged in the courtroom. Chemical tests for BAC, however, are usually accurate. They are usually proportionate to the amount of alcohol you consumed. But it is possible to challenge these tests. For instance, if you recently had dental work and consumed a lot of anesthetics, your BAC could be falsely elevated. You are usually required to submit to a blood test or a breathalyzer test, unless your have been properly advised of your right to refuse. Those tests can be challenged if the test was not calibrated and maintained according to national standards. This is difficult to prove, since these tests are often kept at the hazardously hot or cold temperatures, causing deviation. But these cases have been won in specialized DUI courts. You may have a BAC above the legal limit of .08 because of mouth alcohol contamination from your dental work. This means that you did not consume all that alcohol you were tested for. Mouth alcohol could actually get you an acquittal in court. But because of the way mouth alcohol behaves, it must be proven scientifically. That is where an expert witness can be invaluably helpful. It is not enough to say that you had synthetic alcohol on your teeth from a recent dental appointment. Your BAC must be tested immediately prior to you getting the oral anesthesia, as some mouth alcohol could have evaporated between the time of your treatment and the time of chemical testing. Your lawyer will know how to make sure these tests are done properly, or get an acquittal on appeal.
Ways to Remain Under the Legal Alcohol Limit
With an understanding of Nebraska’s legal limit on blood alcohol levels, you may now be wondering how you can stay within the bounds of those limits when having a drink. Here are a few tips:
Participate in a training session ahead of time. Informal "alcohol training" sessions exist that owners or managers can participate in. This may help you understand the effects of different types and amounts of alcohol on your body, and may even include role-playing scenarios.
Ask questions. If you’re not sure of the maximum number of alcoholic beverages you can consume in a given day, or in a given hour, call your attorney, or the person who handles liquor matters for your business.
Be aware of the type of alcohol you’re ordering. Not every beer (for example) contains exactly the same amount of alcohol. So if you’re unsure about the alcohol levels in different beers , ask your bartender to get clarification ahead of time.
Keep track of how many drinks you’re having. You can order beer, wine and cocktails in different ways, and the number of ounces in one standard serving can vary greatly. For example, a pint of beer usually has around 12 ounces; a typical cocktail has around 1.5 ounces. If you keep track of how many drinks you’re having, however you measure them, you can make sure you stay within safe limits.
Be familiar with what a "standard serving" of liquor looks like. This is a bit different for each type of alcohol, but a glass of wine, a shot of liquor and a beer all have approximately the same amount of alcohol: around .6 ounces. If you’re operating a bar, you (and your staff) should be able to readily identify how the pours differ visually to ensure that amount is always served.