Drinking and driving happens every day. The data suggests that the weekends experience the highest rate of drunk driving crashes, showing that injurious impaired driving behavior is more common at times when people are simply more likely to consume alcohol. Many people do not drink very much during the week, if at all, but are more likely to drink on the weekends.
In the same way, it appears that drinking practices increase during the holiday season, whether that means Thanksgiving, Halloween, New Year’s Day or Christmas. There’s even a correlation with summer holidays, like the Fourth of July or Labor Day and Memorial Day. The spirits industry in the United States makes roughly $49 billion every year. In the stretch from Thanksgiving to New Year’s Day, this industry makes about a quarter of all its yearly sales. Not only does this demonstrate that people drinking more during the holiday season, but they may also be buying alcohol to give as gifts so that others are inspired to drink more as well.
Any time that holidays come around, drinking activity picks up – as does impaired driving enforcement efforts – and that means there’s a greater chance that people will be arrested on impaired driving charges at these times.
The ramifications of a DWI
For those who are going to be driving around the holidays, it’s important to pay attention to the potential ramifications of a DWI charge, just in case they misjudge their alcohol metabolism and find themselves driving while over the legal limit. Those in South Dakota could find themselves facing a fine of $2000 and/or a year behind bars. They’re also going to have their license revoked, and that could last for 12 months. When someone has multiple DWI convictions, the ramifications can become more severe.
But even these initial issues could have a wide-ranging impact on a person’s life. Say that they lose their license and they’re not allowed to drive for a year, and driving was the only way for them to get to work. If they lose their job, it’s clear that a DWI conviction is going to cost them quite a lot more than $2,000.
For these reasons, those who are facing charges need to be well aware of all the defense options they have available to them. It’s important to focus on the future while seeking the best possible outcome.