www.CostaRicaTicas.com

Today's Inside CR reports:

"The new fines in the legislation range from the Tier A, ¢280.000 colones for reckless (speeding over 120 km/h) and drunk driving; Tier B, ¢180.000 for failing to stop at a stop sign or red light, use false or altered license plates and driving 40 km/p over the posted speed limit, among others; Tier C, ¢94.000 for excessive loads, including public transport vehicles with limits exceeding passenger capacity; Tier D, ¢47.000 for not obeying traffic sign (save for stop sign); and Tier E, ¢20.000 for all other violations.

As to drunk driving, the bill also divides drivers into three categories: new drivers, professional drivers and the rest. For the new and pros, the blood alcohol limit is 0.20, while it is 0.50 for the rest. In all cases, a driver of any category with a blood alcohol of 0.75 or greater will face up to three years in jail."
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Any CR lawyers on board to interpret the DWI provisions? Also who is "the rest".

I know when you start discussing math and blood alcohol via breath analysis, the placement of the "." is often misplaced, but in the estados, most states are at .08 as a presumption you are under the influence. So I presume that the reporter means .02, .05, .075?

So for new and professional classes, .02 means about 2 drinks in an hour, and that can be swayed by body weight. There's tons and tons of data on the net to enable someone to decipher how you get to .02 and for how long. My point is if my interpretation is right, that is a tough DWI law. I wake up in the A.M. higher than .02.

Costa Rica uses a different method of measuring blood alcohol than they do in the states. In CR, they measure grams of alcohol per liter of blood so the .5 to .75 numbers are correct. To figure out how that translates to US laws, check out this link as it explains the different methods and what hey equate to... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_alcohol_content

But yes, you are right, the law is very tough on drunk drivers. On a side note, on the way to the airport last night the Transit Police stopped me at one of their drunk driving checkpoints. Despite not having had an alcoholic drink in months, still got to blow in the breathalyzer. Blew a whopping 0.0000 and even got to keep the mouthpiece as a souvenir. The police were professional but very thorough in checking I was completely legal including car papers and if I had my reflective triangles with me In the end, no ticket, no request for bribes and a reasonably short amount of time taken from me.

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Good point but where I am from, which is a .08 state:

"Breath Alcohol Concentration" or "BrAC" means grams of alcohol per 210 liters of breath (Section 11-501.2(a)5 of the Illinois Vehicle Code [625 ILCS 5/11-501.2(a)5]).

The intoxilyzer 5000 is the weapon of choice in many PD's. http://www.ohnsolutions.com/Intoxilyzer ... %20CMI.htm. Liter based.

Hi
Important provisions of this law include:

First time offenders driving while intoxicated (.08 Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) or more) or impaired by drugs while a Ch*ld of younger than 16 years old is in the vehicle may be charged with a class E felony punishable by up to 4 years in State prison.
Individuals charged with driving with a blood alcohol level of .08 or greater and with a Ch*ld under the age of 16 in the vehicle would automatically have their license suspended pending prosecution.
Courts must order all drivers convicted of a misdemeanor or felony DWI to install and maintain an ignition interlock on any vehicle owned and operated by such driver for at least 12 months, in addition to any term imprisonment. The Department of Probation and Correctional Alternatives will issue regulations that will provide counties with different options for supervising the use of interlocks, so as to ensure that they can determine the most appropriate mechanism for their needs.
Drivers who drive while intoxicated or impaired by drugs and cause the death of a Ch*ld younger than 16 in the car may be charged with a Class B felony, punishable by up to 25 years in State prison.
Drivers who drive while intoxicated or impaired by drugs and cause serious physical injury to a Ch*ld in the vehicle may be charged with the Class C felony, punishable by up to 15 years in State prison.
Individuals who are a parent, guardian, custodian or otherwise legally responsible for a Ch*ld who are charged with driving while impaired by alcohol or drugs while that Ch*ld is a passenger in the car would be reported to the Statewide Central Register of Ch*ld Abuse and Maltreatment by the arresting agency.

Wrong forum. Nobody here drives drunk with minors in the car in Costa Rica.

I hope it's not the standard enforcement for 6 months then forget it, or Sala IV throws it out.

t

No but you could get some time and a mandatory blood test.