In the District of Columbia, there are two separate offenses involving driving after drinking:  Driving Under the Influence (DUI) and Driving While Impaired (DWI).  Both of these offenses are criminal offenses punishable by jail time and sizeable fines.  Suspension of driver’s license is another result of conviction of either of these offenses.  A comparable distinction between DUI and DWI exists in federal court in the District of Columbia, for such offenses alleged to have been committed on federal property.  The first part of the statute addresses DUI, the most serious offense in the District of Columbia:

§ 50-2201.05. ...; driving under the influence of liquor or drugs....

(b) (1) (A) (i) No person shall operate or be in physical control of any vehicle in the District:

(I) When the person's alcohol concentration at the time of testing is 0.08 grams or more either per 100 milliliters of blood or per 210 liters of breath or is 0.10 grams or more per 100 milliliters of urine;

(II) While under the influence of intoxicating liquor or any drug or any combination thereof; or

(III) If under 21 years of age, when the person's blood, breath, or urine contains any measurable amount of alcohol.

(ii) Any person violating any provision of this paragraph upon conviction for the first offense, unless the person has been previously been convicted for a violation of paragraph (2) of this subsection [pertaining to fleeing an accident], shall be fined $300 and may be imprisoned for not more than 90 days. In addition, if the person's alcohol concentration was at least 0.20 grams per 100 milliliters of blood or per 210 liters of breath, or was at least 0.25 grams per 100 milliliters of urine, but was not more than 0.25 grams per 100 milliliters of blood or per 210 liters of breath, or was not more than 0.32 grams per 100 milliliters of urine, the person shall be imprisoned for a mandatory minimum period of 5 days, or if the person's alcohol concentration was more than 0.25 grams per 100 milliliters of blood or per 210 liters of breath or 0.32 grams per 100 milliliters of urine, the person shall be imprisoned for an additional mandatory minimum period of 10 days, which mandatory minimum period shall not be suspended by the court.

(B) Upon conviction for the second offense, or for the first offense following a previous conviction for a violation of paragraph (2) of this subsection [pertaining to fleeing an accident], within a 15-year period, an individual shall be fined an amount not less $1,000 and not more than $5,000 and sentenced for a period of imprisonment of not less than 5 days, which must be imposed and not suspended, and not more than one year, or required to perform at least 30 days of community service in accordance with D.C. Code § 16-712. In addition, if the person's alcohol concentration was at least 0.20 grams per 100 milliliters of blood or per 210 liters of breath, or was at least 0.25 grams per 100 milliliters of urine, but was not more than 0.25 grams per 100 milliliters of blood or per 210 liters of breath, or was not more than 0.32 grams per 100 milliliters of urine, the person shall be imprisoned for an additional minimum mandatory period of 10 days or if the person's alcohol concentration was more than 0.25 grams per 100 milliliters of blood or per 210 liters of breath or more than 0.32 grams per 100 milliliters of urine, the person shall be imprisoned for an additional mandatory minimum period of 20 days; which additional mandatory minimum periods shall not be suspended by the court.

(C) Upon conviction for the third or any subsequent offense, or for the second offense following a previous conviction for a violation of paragraph (2) of this subsection [pertaining to fleeing an accident], within a 15-year period, an individual shall be fined an amount not less than $2,000 and not more than $10,000 and either sentenced for a period of imprisonment of not less than 10 days, which must be imposed and not suspended, and not more than one year, or required to perform at least 60 days of community service in accordance with § 16-712. In addition, if the person's alcohol concentration was at least 0.20 grams per 100 milliliters of blood or per 210 liters of breath, or was at least 0.25 grams per 100 milliliters of urine, but was not more than 0.25 grams per 100 milliliters of blood or per 210 liters of breath, or was not more than 0.32 grams per 100 milliliters of urine, the person shall be imprisoned for an additional minimum mandatory period of 15 days, or if the person's alcohol concentration was more than 0.25 grams per 100 milliliters of blood or per 210 liters of breath or 0.32 grams per 100 milliliters of urine, the person shall be imprisoned for a mandatory minimum period of 25 days, which additional mandatory minimum periods shall not be suspended by the court.

(D) In addition to the penalties otherwise authorized by this section, any person convicted for a violation of paragraphs (1) and (2) of this subsection while transporting a person 17 years of age or younger shall be fined an additional minimum of $500 and not more than $1000 and sentenced to perform 48 hours of community service benefitting children or, for a subsequent offense, 80 hours of community service in such program.

The statute also encompasses the lesser offense of DWI:

(2) No person shall, while the individual's ability to operate a vehicle is impaired by the consumption of intoxicating liquor, operate or be in physical control of any vehicle in the District. Any person violating any provision of this paragraph, upon conviction for the first offense, unless the person has previously been convicted for a violation of paragraph (1) of this subsection [pertaining to fleeing an accident], shall be fined not less than $200 and not more than $300 and may be imprisoned for not more than 30 days; upon conviction for the second offense, or for the first offense following a previous conviction for a violation of paragraph (1) of this subsection [pertaining to fleeing an accident], within a 15-year period, shall be fined an amount not less than $300 and not more than $500 and either sentenced for a period of imprisonment of not less than 5 days, which must be imposed and not suspended, and not more than one year or required to perform at least 30 days of community service in accordance with § 16-712; and, upon conviction for the third or any subsequent offense, or for the second offense following a previous conviction for a violation of paragraph (1) of this subsection [pertaining to fleeing an accident], within a 15-year period, shall be fined an amount not less than $1,000 and not more than $5,000 and either sentenced for a period of imprisonment of not less than 10 days, which must be imposed and not suspended, and not more than one year or required to perform at least 60 days of community service in

accordance with § 16-712.

One can see that a DUI/DWI conviction in the District of Columbia can have ruinous consequences, especially in cases of elevated BAC’s.  Furthermore, subsequent offenses within a 15 year period require elevated penalties.  Finally, one must be prepared to have to return to various courts in the District of Columbia to seek to keep one’s license or to obtain restricted license privileges.

When BAC is .08 or greater, it is a matter of Driving Under the Influence (DUI):

1^st Offense DUI Penalties

$300, up to 90 days in jail, 6 month loss of license.

If BAC is .20 to .25, add 5 days mandatory jail.

If BAC is .26 or above, add 10 days mandatory jail.

2^nd Offense DUI Penalties

Between $1,000 and $5,000, 5 days mandatory jail and up to 1 year maximum, 6 month loss of license.

If BAC is .20 to .25, add 10 days mandatory jail.

If BAC is .26 or above, add 20 days mandatory jail.

3^rd Offense DUI Penalties

Between $2,000 and $10,000, 10 days mandatory jail and up to 1 year maximum, 6 month loss of license.

If BAC is .20 to .25, add 15 days mandatory jail.

If BAC is .26 or above, add 25 days mandatory jail.

When BAC is greater than .05 but less than .08, it is a matter of Driving While Impaired (DWI):

1^st Offense DWI Penalties

Between $200 and $300, up to 30 days in jail, 6 month loss of license.

2^nd Offense DWI Penalties

Between $300 and $500,  5 days mandatory jail and up to 1 year maximum, 6 month loss of license.

3^rd Offense DWI Penalties

Between $1,000 and $5,000, 10 days mandatory jail and up to 1 year maximum, 6 month loss of license.

DUI and DWI are criminal cases; as such, the government has the burden of proving its case against a defendant "beyond a reasonable doubt." In the drunk driving context, the government proves its case against a defendant by introducing the driver's (1) Driving Behavior, (2) Appearance and Coordination, and/or (3) Scientific Evidence.

In the District of Columbia, the prosecutor will place an emphasis on the BAC certificate (scientific evidence) to secure a conviction.  As with any scientific evidence, the BAC certificate can be subject to attack.  For this reason, as outlined below, it is important to advance technical arguments against the BAC certificate (scientific evidence). Technical arguments are not available in all cases, but they are in some.

§ 50-2205.03. Admissibility of test results

An official copy of the results of any blood, urine, or breath test performed on a person by a technician or by a police officer shall be admissible as substantive evidence, without the presence or the testimony of the technician or of the police officer who administered the test, in any proceeding in which that person is charged with a violation of § 50-2201.05(b); provided, that the police officer or the technician certifies that the breath test was conducted in accordance with the manufacturer's specifications, and that the equipment on which the breath test was conducted has been tested within the past 3 months and has been found to be accurate or, in the case of a blood or urine specimen, that the test of the specimen has been certified to be accurate by the chief toxicologist, Office of the Chief Medical Examiner or his or her designee; provided, further, that the person on whom any blood, urine, or breath test has been performed, or that person's attorney, may seek to compel the attendance and the testimony of the technician or of the police officer in any proceeding by stating, in writing, the reasons why the accuracy of the test result is in issue and by requesting, in writing, at least 15 days in advance of the proceeding, that such technician or such police officer appear and testify in the proceeding. Any such person upon whom a blood, urine, or breath test is performed, shall be informed, in writing, of the provisions of this section at the time that such person is charged. After having been informed, failure to give timely and proper notice shall constitute a waiver of the person's (on whom the test has been performed) right to the  presence and testimony of the technician or the police officer.

However, under DC law, this BAC certificate is merely “competent evidence” which is to be considered along with other evidence of intoxication (e.g. driving behavior, appearance and coordination), if any. 

§ 50-2205.02. Prima Facie Evidence of intoxication.

If as a result of the operation or the physical control of a vehicle, a person is tried in any court of competent jurisdiction within the District of Columbia for operating or being in physical control of a vehicle while under the influence of intoxicating liquor in violation of § 50-2201.05(b), negligent homicide in violation of § 50-2203.01, or manslaughter committed in the operation of a vehicle in violation of § 22-2105, and in the course of the trial there is received, based upon a chemical test, evidence of alcohol in the defendant's blood, urine, or breath, such evidence:

(1) Shall, if at the time of testing, defendant's alcohol concentration was 0.05 grams or less per 100 milliliters of blood or per 210 liters of breath or 0.06 grams or less per 100 milliliters of urine, establish a rebuttable presumption that the defendant was not, at the time, under the influence of intoxicating liquor.

(2) Shall not, if at the time of testing, defendant's alcohol concentration was more than 0.05 grams per 100 milliliters of blood or per 210 liters of breath or more than 0.06 grams per 100 milliliters of urine, but less than 0.08 grams per 100 milliliters of blood or per 210 liters of breath or less than 0.10 grams per 100 milliliters of urine, establish a presumption that the defendant was or was not, at the time, under the influence of intoxicating liquor, but it may be considered with other competent evidence in determining whether the defendant was under the influence of intoxicating liquor.

In introducing evidence of driving behavior, the prosecutor will generally call the police officer to testify about his or her observations of the driver prior to stopping the vehicle. Often, police officers will refer to weaving, erratic turning, and excessive speed. These observations are then argued by the prosecutor as evidence of Driving Under the Influence of alcohol.

Driving behavior alone, however, is not enough to prove a government's case in chief in the DUI/DWI context although it is often enough proof of Reckless Driving. The police officer will often expand her testimony to include observations of the defendant upon the stop:  blood shot eyes, strong odor of alcohol, slurred speech.  These are recognized to be indicative of intoxication and the prosecution will elicit this evidence from the police officer.

In addition to appearance, the police officer will also testify on the defendant's coordination or lack thereof. This evidence will often rely on field sobriety tests conducted by the officer at the scene of the arrest.

Field Sobriety Tests include the following:

1. Touching the tip of the nose with the forefinger
2. Walking a straight line, heal-to-toe in one direction, turning around, and walking back in the opposite direction
3. Standing on one foot
4. Reciting the alphabet
5. Counting, usually backwards, from one number to another

The defense of a DWI charge is laced with technical issues. An attorney must review the stop for Constitutional defenses based on the Fourth Amendment. If the stop passes muster, the defense counsel must analyze the sobriety tests and BAC certificate for adherence to proper procedure and processes. Good attorneys will always subpoena and review the maintenance records for the breath test machine to make certain that it was properly maintained and that the operator was fully authorized to conduct the test.

Attorneys often use of experts in the field of medicine or toxicology to present credible proof of sobriety.  Such use of experts is commonplace in cases where the BAC is low - between .08 and .10.  The use of experts for higher BACs is often reserved for cases in which the defendant has a medical condition such as diabetes that sometimes complicates the assessment of driving under the influence of alcohol.