Alcohol Suspected in Car Crash that Injured Six Teens
Police suspect that the single car crash that injured six teens near Edgewater could have been caused by alcohol. According to reports the car crashed near Loch Haven Road, Central Avenue. Police believe that the driver and the five passengers were all drinking before the crash. The accident occurred when Sienna Lee Brandhorst, 18, was driving a Toyota Camry at around 12:35 am on the Central Avenue and lost control of the vehicle. The car then skid, rotated 180 degrees, fell into a ditch, and overturned, landing on its roof.
Brandhorst sustained serious but non-life-threatening injuries while the five passengers sustained non-life-threatening injuries. The age of the passengers ranged from 14 to 18. Police continue to investigate the accident and have not yet charged Brandhorst.
Penalties for Drunk Driving
Those charged with causing a drunk driving accident in Baltimore face severe penalties. Maryland law differentiates between a DUI or driving under the influence and DWI or driving while intoxicated offense.
DUI Offense
You can be charged with a DUI offense if your blood alcohol level is 0.08 or greater. This leads an immediate 12 points automatically being marked on your driving license that leads to its instant revocation. Besides, a fine of $1,000 can be imposed for a first DUI offense.
DWI Offense
Maryland law can charge you with a DWI offense if your blood alcohol level is 0.07. This charge can also be imposed on those who fail field sobriety tests and depends a lot on the judgment and discretion of the law enforcement official who assesses you. A conviction for a DWI offense leads to 8 points being added to the driving license and a fine of $500.
Legal Rights
When a police official suspects a person of driving under the influence, they have the right to administer field sobriety tests. You can also be asked to blow into the breath analyzer. While a person has the right to refuse these tests, this can lead to an immediate revocation of the driving license, even if the DUI charge against you is proved. However, any person charged with a DUI or DWI in Baltimore, should immediately retain the services of a drunk driving accident attorney in Baltimore to protect their rights and represent them.
Other Penalties
A person convicted of driving under the influence or driving while intoxicated can face imprisonment from a minimum of 60 days to longer. The duration of the imprisonment and the severity of the penalty depends on the circumstances of the drunk driving accident. Those who are under the age of 21 will face more severe penalties. Additionally, those responsible for injuring others or causing the death of others are likely to face more severe penalties.
It also does not help if you flee from the scene. This is called hit and run and is despised by all decent citizens.
Civil Liabilities
Apart from the criminal charges and criminal penalties facing a person arrested for causing a drunk driving accident, there is also the possibility of civil liabilities. Those injured in a drunk driving accident can ask the drunk driver or their insurance provider for financial compensation for the injuries sustained. An experienced drunk driving accident lawyer in Baltimore will be able to defend their client against such charges and ensure that the compensation awarded is minimized.
Personal Injury Compensation
A person responsible for a drunk driving accident can be asked to compensate for the personal injuries sustained by others. In such cases, the compensation includes the cost of medical treatment, the loss of income, earnings, or wages, the cost of modification to the home in order to cope with the injuries, the cost of hiring someone to perform chores and tasks that the injured performed before the accident, and so on.
In addition, the jury can also be asked to award non-economic damages to the injured to compensate them for the pain and suffering they have endured. A competent drunk driving accident lawyer in Baltimore will be able to help reduce the compensation awarded by the jury.