The History of DUI: From Drunkometer to Breathalyzer

The first DUI arrest occurred one hundred and eleven years ago involving a London taxi driver named George Smith. He was arrested for drunk driving in 1897 after he crashed his car into a tree. He pled guilty for DUI and was fined 25 shillings.

DUI Laws in the United States

The U.S. passed its first DUI laws just thirteen years later in New York. These very first laws prohibited people from driving while intoxicated but never clearly stated exactly what intoxication meant; the blood alcohol content level was set at 0.15%.

Technology Created to Test for Intoxication

About twenty years later in 1931, a professor of biochemistry and toxicology named Dr. Rolla Harger invented the Drunkometer. It was a balloon like device and was the first breath test that could measure if people were intoxicated. Advancements in technology brought us the breathalyzer, invented by one of Dr. Harger's co-workers, Mr. Robert Borkenstein in 1953. The breathalyzer was more accurate and enabled police to more scientifically test for intoxication. The breathalyzer reads the proportion of alcohol vapors on a person's breath after they blow into it. This then gives a fairly accurate reflection of the level of alcohol in a person's blood.

Further regulations imposed

The government began to enforce stricter legal limits to stop the spread of people driving while under the influence in the 1970s and 80s. Advocate groups like Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) were then formed encouraging legislatures to continue to pass new laws to help curb DUIs.

MADD was started in 1980 by a woman named Candy Lightner after her daughter was killed by a drunk driver while walking home from a school carnival. The driver had previously been convicted of DUI and was out on bail for a hit and run DUI that occurred just a few days prior. Congress continued to be pressured by the public and further legislation increased the penalties for DUI. The legal blood alcohol content level was changed from 0.1% to 0.08 %. Additionally, the legal drinking age was raised from 18 to 21 years in every state.

Legal Help is Vital

If you have been arrested for DUI in the Brevard County or surrounding area, it is vital that you get help from a Brevard County criminal defense attorney. If you are convicted, you could be facing time in jail, have your driver's license suspended, pay monetary fines and more. At Kernan & Austin, Attorneys at Law, we have helped many clients maintain their freedoms including those charged with DUI. We are aggressive, committed and are proud of our extensive experience and success record in the courts. We offer free consultations in our office and will sit down with you to discuss the details of your case.

Contact a Brevard County DUI defense attorney in our office for a consultation today.