The legal drinking age in the District of Columbia
is 21 years of age, and there are three very distinct drinking and
driving laws that are enforced:
- Driving While Intoxicated (DWI)
DWI applies to a person having a statutorily prohibited blood
alcohol concentration of .08 or higher. The suspect can be convicted
in court solely on the breath, blood, or urine results without
any structured field sobriety test.
- Driving Under the Influence (DUI)
DUI applies to a person having a blood alcohol concentration of
.05 percent - .07 percent. The suspect can be convicted in court
of this charge if the officer has other clues of impairment from
a structured field sobriety test.
- Under Age Drinking
Persons under the age of 21 years of age cannot purchase, consume,
or possess any alcoholic beverages of any kind. If they are found
to be operating a motor vehicle with any measurable amount of
alcohol, they will be placed under arrest and charged with DWI—Driving
While Intoxicated.
Technically, according to DC Code, the District
of Columbia has a zero tolerance for driving under the influence.
If a person 21 years of age or older has a blood alcohol concentration
of .02 percent - .04 percent and extremely bad driving, this person
can be placed under arrest for Driving Under the Influence of an
alcoholic beverage.
The District of Columbia recently amended the
DWI law, lowering the acceptable blood alcohol content (BAC) level
from .10 percent to .08 percent. This new amendment became law on
April 13, 1999.
