A law enforcement officer was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol (DUI) after he was found passed out in his truck which was stopped in the road, according to an article at www.News4Jax.com. The officer was given a field sobriety test which he reportedly failed, and was then arrested for DUI.
One question in the DUI context that may arise from this arrest is how a person can be arrested for drunk driving, or DUI, when he is not even driving the vehicle. In other words, does a person have to actual drive the vehicle to be arrested and ultimately convicted of a DUI defense? The answer is no. A person can commit a DUI if he/she is driving the vehicle when his/her normal faculties are impaired or with a blood or breath alcohol level of 0.08 or higher, or if he/she is in “actual physical control” of the vehicle. “Actual physical control” means the person has the capability to direct the vehicle even if he/she is not doing so around the time of the arrest. So, if a person is in the driver’s seat of a stopped vehicle with the keys in the ignition, that person may be at risk of a DUI arrest even if the person is not driving. If the vehicle is stopped in the middle of the road and the driver is passed out, as reported in the article referenced above, the risk of a DUI arrest increases.