Phoenix DUI Lawyer Blog

If you have been charged with an Arizona DUI, you may hear some of these common
terms. Arizona criminal defense attorneys, Arizona DUI lawyers, law enforcement officials and the prosecution use these words often. So you may want to become familiar with just of few of these legal definitions:

Administrative License Suspension:
Suspension of the license of drivers charged DUI when a driver has a BAC above the prescribed limit, or sometimes if a driver refuses to take a roadside blood or breath test.

BAC:
Short for "blood alcohol concentration." BAC refers to the amount of alcohol in your bloodstream and is measured in percentages.

Blood Test:
A laboratory test that directly measures the percentage of alcohol content of the blood drawn from a DWI suspect.

Breath Test:
A test of blood alcohol level that is derived from measuring the alcohol level of the suspect's breath.

PBT (Preliminary Breath Test):
A portable, hand-held device used by law enforcement to measure the BAC of suspected drunk drivers.

Burn off Rate:
The rate at which alcohol in the body is metabolized, and the blood alcohol begins to
fall, decrease, or "burn off".

Chemical Test:
As it relates to DUI, a test of the alcohol or drug concentration in a person's body (Breath, Blood, Urine).

DUI:
Driving While Under the Influence.

DWI:
Driving While Intoxicated.

Felony:
A serious crime, in Arizona DUI/DWI can become a felony even without an injury or death, if the suspect has a given number of prior DWI convictions. A felony can result in a sentence to jail or state prison.

FST (Field Sobriety Test):
A series of physical and mental coordination tests designed to help an officer decide if a driver is DWI.

Intoxilyzer:
A brand name for a blood alcohol breath testing machine.

Miranda Rights:
The formal advisement that you have the right to remain silent and to have a lawyer present before answering questions, which police must recite prior to questioning someone who is in custody.

Misdemeanor:
A crime less serious than a felony. Misdemeanors are sometimes categorized by classes or degrees.

Probation:
When all or part of the required jail time is suspended in exchange for good behavior, as determined by checking in with a probation officer.

Zero Tolerance BAC:
Allowable blood alcohol content for under age persons (under 21). In Arizona this percentage is 0% (meaning absolutely no alcohol content must be detected)

Phoenix DUI Attorney - Arizona DUI Lawyer

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