With Monday being St. Patrick’s Day, many people in the Virginia Beach area are no doubt busy finalizing their plans for the day — or in some cases — the weekend. And while not everyone decides to get drunk on St. Patrick’s Day, the holiday is normally associated with green beer, corned beef and intoxication.
Of course, we are not here to say there is anything wrong with having a few drinks and celebrating with friends. Rather, the warning comes from the fact that the police in Virginia also know many like to imbibe on St. Patrick’s Day and have therefore already made more formalized plans to be out patrolling for drunk drivers.
Law enforcement officials are saying the reason behind the extra driving under the influence enforcement is to reduce the number of accidents and help save lives.
In looking at this goal, most would agree this extra DUI enforcement is a good thing. Even just getting the word out about the fact that police are really going to be on the lookout for suspected drunk drivers may even encourage some to call a cab or find a safer way home. However, those who end up getting arrested for DUI should keep in mind that there may be legal options available to them.
Simply driving on St. Patrick’s Day is not enough of a reason to be pulled over and accused of driving drunk. Rather, if someone is arrested, police must have good reason to believe the driver was actually under the influence. Along these same lines, certain rules and procedures must also be followed by law enforcement during the traffic stop.
In general, Virginia is known for having some of the strictest laws when it comes to drunk driving. Given the fact that someone accused of DUI is facing such serious consequences, it is important for those arrested to seek out legal representation to learn more about what options may be available.
Source: The Roanoke Times, “Operation ‘Lucky’ Strike Force is St. Patrick’s Day weekend,” March 14, 2013
