For so many reasons, bicycling is a worthy activity. It is an excellent form of cardiovascular exercise, helping people of all ages stay healthy. Since bicycles do not require gasoline, you are doing other people’s health a favor when you ride a bike, too, since you are not contributing to air pollution by producing car exhaust. Biking is also great for your wallet; aside from not paying for gasoline, a high-end bike costs less than a Craigslist jalopy. Given that, when you are trying to get home after a night of drinking, almost any method of transportation is better than driving your car, but drunk bicycling comes with its share of legal risks, at least in New Jersey. If you are arrested for DUI or DWI while riding a bicycle, contact a New Jersey DWI lawyer.
Drunk Biking is Dangerous Enough to Be Illegal in New Jersey
Under New Jersey law, you can get charged and convicted of DWI even if the vehicle you were riding was a bicycle instead of a motor vehicle. Therefore, you need a DUI lawyer if you are being accused of drunk biking. The rationale is that bicyclists can ride on most roads open to vehicular traffic. Therefore, if you ride a bike on a city street when your blood alcohol content (BAC) is 0.08% or higher, you are at an increased risk of causing a traffic accident. If a drunk cyclist swerves out of the bike lane, this could result in a collision between a car and the bike, or even between two cars, when nearby drivers swerve out of the way to avoid hitting the bicycle.
Penalties for Bicycling Under the Influence of Alcohol
Most penalties for DWI involving a motor vehicle also apply if the vehicle involved was a bicycle. For example, you might have to pay criminal fines and any of a host of surcharges and mandatory donations that New Jersey courts impose on people convicted of drunk driving offenses. You might also get a probation sentence or even go to jail. If it is your first DWI and you do not have any prior convictions for other offenses, you might get to participate in a pretrial diversion program, where you can get your DWI charges dropped if you complete the program successfully.
Unlike a DWI conviction for driving a car or other motor vehicle, a drunk biking DWI conviction does not result in a driver’s license suspension. The court also will not require you to use an ignition interlock device since bicycles have no relationship to driver’s licenses or ignition. In other words, the court gives you credit for having the presence of mind for not trying to operate a motor vehicle while drunk.
A Criminal Defense Lawyer Can Help You Fight DWI Charges
A DWI defense lawyer can help you if you are accused of driving a car or riding a bicycle while under the influence of alcohol. Contact the Law Offices of Jonathan F. Marshall to discuss your case.
