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DUI Laws in Connecticut

Driving a motor vehicle is considered a privilege in Connecticut, and under Connecticut's Implied Consent Law, anyone who drives a motor vehicle has given their permission to a test to determine their blood alcohol concentration (BAC).

DUI in Connecticut

In Connecticut, any person who operates a motor vehicle after drinking alcohol or under the influence of drugs is a criminal offense and may be prosecuted with or without any direct evidence of an individual's blood alcohol concentration (BAC). The way this is determined is if there is reason to believe that a person's ability to drive has been impaired.

More articles on DUI Laws in Connecticut

Legally intoxicated law in Connecticut

If you are under the age of 21, you are considered legally intoxicated at a 0.02 blood alcohol concentration or higher. Otherwise you are legally intoxicated if your blood alcohol concentration is 0.08 or above.

Two ways to lose your license in Connecticut:

Administrative Per Se through DMV – If you have been arrested for operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs and either failed a your tests or refused to submit to a test, your operator's license or privilege will be suspended.
Criminal penalties through court - Under Connecticut's criminal law, a driver arrested for driving under the influence will receive both a summons and a court date.

Connecticut DUI arrest policy is as follows:

If you are arrested for DUI in Connecticut, you will be detained by the police and read your rights.
A DUI arrest in Connecticut gets your vehicle towed at your expense.
You will be taken to the police station by a police cruiser.
If your blood alcohol concentration shows 0.08 or higher, you will be held on the presumption that you were operating a motor vehicle while being under the influence.
You will be held in jail until you are bailed out.

Connecticut’s DUI penalties

A person convicted of DUI is subject to the penalties listed below:

1st conviction - Receives a prison sentence either up to six months with a minimum of two days or up to six months suspended with probation of 100 ours public service, fined $500-$1000 and one year driver’s license suspension

2nd conviction – Up to two years prison sentence with a mandatory of 120 consecutive days and probation with 100 hours public service, a fine of $1000-$4000 and three years license suspension or until age 21 if longer.

3rd conviction and subsequent – up to three year prison sentence with mandatory minimum or one year and probation with 100 hours public service, $2000-$8000 in fines and permanent revocation of your driver’s license.

Alcohol affects your driving ability

Studies have shown that consuming any amount of alcohol can impair your driving ability and increase your chances of being in a fatal motor vehicle accident or causing bodily harm to an innocent bystander.

Solving the Colorado’s DUI problem

Over the years, Connecticut has put in place new measures to combat impaired driving such as, stiff penalties, mandatory sentencing and strict enforcement of Colorado DUI law, which sends a strong and clear message that driving under the influence in Connecticut’s roadways will not be tolerated whatsoever.