Our readers may or may not be aware that tonight, Thanksgiving Eve, is one of the busiest nights of the year for bar-hopping. Many individuals visiting with friends and family from wherever they have gone for the holiday tend to go out drinking in order to celebrate. Unfortunately, many of these bar and restaurant patrons will be pulled over for drunk driving tonight and throughout the busy holiday weekend.
As a result of the high rate of bar and restaurant visitation this evening and into the weekend, a number of law enforcement agencies nationwide are heightening their DUI patrols over the next several days. Accordingly, it is important that you take steps to ensure that you do not get pulled over for drunk driving this weekend. A drunk driving conviction can haunt you for years to come.
If you decide to go out drinking this weekend, take reasonable steps to ensure that you have a designated driver on hand or take a form of paid transportation home like a taxi or a bus. If you do not have access to either of these options, look up free transportation options that may be available in your area due to the holiday weekend. Many organizations set up free rides for intoxicated individuals at the holidays.
Finally, if you cannot access sober, alternative transportation, either refrain from drinking or wait until you have been sober for some time before getting behind the wheel. Because alcohol metabolizes differently under various circumstances, you may feel sober before your blood alcohol content (BAC) has reached legal levels. As a result, you should wait even longer after beginning to feel sober before getting behind the wheel.
Source: The Patriot-News, “Thanksgiving Eve’s big night for bars, police on patrol for drunken drivers,” David Wenner, Nov. 25, 2013