The Nuances of DUI Less Safe: How Slight Impairments Can Lead to Serious Charges

A Georgia man was arrested last month, accused of a driving a lawn mower while under the influence of alcohol. Police arrested the man after seeing him driving the mower on the road while holding a can of something. He threw the can, but they discovered more cans of beer on the mower. The man told police that he had only had one beer. He was arrested for a DUI Less Safe.

A Moving Vehicle

You may be surprised to learn that you can be arrested for operating a number of different types of vehicles while under the influence. The law in Georgia is very broad, and can include almost any moving motor device. These include motorized, non-highway vehicles such as a lawn mower, ATV, tractor or golf cart.

DUI Less Safe

A DUI Less Safe means that even if his blood-alcohol content was not above the state limit, the gentleman could have been driving in a way that made the vehicle less safe for himself and other drivers on the road. In this case, the evidence of the open containers gave the officers evidence to arrest him, even if his BAC was not .08% or above.

Not on the road?

We think this begs the question, though… What if the man had been driving the lawn mower on his own property when he was spotted drinking? Would he still be subject to arrest?

In theory, yes, he could still be arrested for a DUI if he was drinking on his own property. The state prohibits drunk driving on “highways and elsewhere throughout the state.”  However, it is less likely that an officer would enter private property to make an arrest, unless there was clear evidence that the person was putting other motorists in danger. Or, if the officer was called out to investigate something happening on private property.

Despite this caveat, we think it is best to refrain from drinking and mowing in the state of Georgia.

Questions about your Georgia DUI arrest? Schiavone Law Group can help.