The History of U.S. Blood-Alcohol Level Regulations

Posted Thursday, June 29, 2017 by Andrew Charles Huff

New York first outlawed driving under the influence of alcohol in 1910. However, blood-alcohol level regulations were not introduced until the 1930s.

The Early Laws

After New York’s prohibition against intoxication, many other states followed suit. However, these laws were vague, with no specific legal limit to define what constituted an impaired driver.

Invention of a Blood-Alcohol System

With the repeal of prohibition, an Indiana University professor of toxicology and biochemistry created a device in 1936 that could determine blood-alcohol concentration, using a balloon filled with a chemical solution. When a person inflated the balloon, the air within would change color if alcohol was present. By 1938, the legal blood-alcohol limit was set at 0.15 in most places, supported by research from the American Medical Association and the National Safety Council.

Introduction of the Breathalyzer

In 1953, the more accurate Breathalyzer was invented by a university professor and retired police captain. Like its predecessor, this device could also determine alcohol concentration using the breath, in combination with chemical oxidation and photometry.

Modern Regulations

When Mothers Against Drunk Drivers was created in 1980 to bring awareness to drunk driving deaths, the attitude toward and penalties for DUI were relatively lax. The organization pushed for tougher drunk driving penalties as well as legislation passed in 1984 raising the drinking age to 21.

Washington Laws

In Washington, current law mandates a license suspension following a DUI. Drivers may request a hearing, scheduled within 60 days of the arrest, at which the individual and his or her DUI attorney can contest the suspension. If the suspension is upheld, licenses are typically suspended for 90 days for a first offense and up to a year for a second offense. For those drivers who refuse to have their BAC measured with a breathalyzer, the license suspension can range from a year for a first offense and more for the second offense, so it is especially important in these cases to retain a DUI attorney.

Additionally, a DUI conviction can carry fines up to $5,000, jail time for up to a year, and other penalties. There are many nuances to DUI penalties that can be taken into consideration; this is why you need an experienced DUI attorney on your side to understand