Summer is here. The Fourth of July is fast approaching. For you, that probably means spending a lot of time with friends and family at events that may include a bit of alcohol. Have fun, but be careful about drinking and driving. DWI patrols are in force all year long but significantly increase around the July Fourth holiday.
The state of North Carolina has a program called Booze It & Lose It. It has been around since 1994, and its goal is to hopefully prevent people from driving while intoxicated or at least remove people from the road who do opt to drive while under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
How successful has the program been?
This program has been incredibly successful. The most recently published data for Booze It & Lose It around July Fourth comes from the Operation Firecracker campaign back in 2019. In that year, 452 agencies were involved statewide. They set up a total of 2782 DWI checkpoints, at which they made 966 DWI arrests — 96 of which involved drugs and 106 involved underage drinkers. They also issued over 40,000 criminal and traffic citations during this operation.
Consequences of a DWI conviction
The consequences associated with a DWI conviction in North Carolina can be significant. They include:
- Fines up to $10,000
- Jail time
- Loss of driving privileges
- Towing fees
- Various other expenses
The severity of the penalties issued in a case depends on the details. If you happen to cause a crash in which someone was hurt or killed due to your driving while intoxicated, the criminal and personal consequences could be even more severe than what is listed here. In other words, driving while intoxicated is not something the state treats lightly.
If you end up facing a DWI charge this summer…
If you end up facing a DWI charge this summer as a result of the Booze It & Lose It campaign or just bad luck, know you do not have to fight the charge on your own. You do have the right to seek assistance navigating the criminal court system as well as the administrative hearings you’ll have to attend to address whether you’ll get to keep your driving privileges.
A DWI charge does not always result in a conviction or the maximum penalties allowed under the law, but that doesn’t mean prosecuting attorneys won’t be fighting their hardest to make sure you receive the punishment they feel is appropriate. So protect yourself and get help defending yourself.