Motorized Barstool DUI
You may be charged with a DUI if you're drunk driving anything - and we mean anything. Even a barstool on wheels.
An Ohio man was recently charged with drunk driving a homemade motorized barstool on wheels. According to the police report, Kile Wygle crashed his barstool while trying to make a 180 degree turn and sustained some injuries. He called 911 to report the accident and get help.
When police arrived, Wygle, a NASCAR enthusiast, boasted that his barstool could reach speeds of 38 miles per hour and admitted that he had consumed about 15 beers before the crash.
Wygle built the barstool vehicle using a five-hoursepower lawnmower engine, which he welded to a frame. He added a steering wheel and hit the road.
The go-stool driver was treated for minor injuries and charged with OVI (operating a vehicle while intoxicated) and driving with a suspended license. He has requested a jury trial. The wrecked barstool was not impounded, as a car likely would have been.
There are many instances in which people who are not actually driving cars are charged with DUI. In most states, a traditional motor vehicle is not necessary for a DUI arrest. Many other types of vehicles may still qualify as operating a motor vehicle.
If a scooter, wheelchair, lawnmower, golf cart, or other mode of transportation has a motor, an intoxicated operator can generally be charged with driving under the influence. In many jurisdictions, it is the motor, whether gas or electric, that makes the operation of a vehicle a crime to operate while over the legal blood alcohol content limit of .08.
In some cases, no motor is required for a DUI arrest. There have been cases of people on horseback being charged with DUI. There have also been DUI cases involving bicycles. A man who was actually walking beside and pushing his bicycle across his front yard was arrested for DUI in Ohio.
Jeff Brown was walking beside his bike in his front yard when an officer stopped him because the bike was not equipped with a headlight. The officer smelled alcohol on Brown’s breath and asked him to take a breath test. Brown refused and was arrested for DUI.
He was convicted of DUI, his driver’s license was suspended for six months, and he spent four days in jail. Brown appealed the conviction, but lost. He later investigated the DUI laws in Ohio and found that the laws had been changed to include non-traditional vehicles and allow DUI arrests on private property based on MADD statistics.
Many states are enacting stricter DUI laws with tougher penalties for even first-offense DUI convictions. Laws are also getting broader to include more types of vehicles and locations, as was seen in the Brown case. If you have been arrested for DUI, consider contacting a DUI lawyer as soon as possible to discuss your options and defense strategy.
Article Source: http://www.totaldui.com