dui DUI D.U.I.: driving under the influence

The words dui laws, DUI law, D.U.I, and "driving under the influence", are used by DUI lawyers and DUI attorneys in  United  States DUI Law. The expression "DUI" is not found in the Criminal Code of Canada. Canadians use terminology other than DUI or "driving under the influence". We use the words "impaired driving" or "impaired operation", or "impaired care or control" but not "driving under the influence" or "driving under impairment". In Canada it is any impairment by alcohol or a drug of one's ability to operate a motor vehicle combined with operation that is forbidden, not "driving under impairment" or "driving under the influence" (DUI). It is also a "DUI" criminal offence in Canada to drive having more than 80 milligrams of alcohol per 100 mls of blood whether one's ability to drive is "influenced" (DUI) or not . 

Canada has two main substantive DUI law criminal offences:

  1. impaired operation or care or control,
  2. over 80 operation or care or control

Section 253. Every one commits an offence who operates a motor vehicle or vessel or operates or assists in the operation of an aircraft or of railway equipment or has the care or control of a motor vehicle, vessel, aircraft or railway equipment, whether it is in motion or not,

(a) while the person's ability to operate the vehicle, vessel, aircraft or railway equipment is impaired by alcohol or a drug; or

(b) having consumed alcohol in such a quantity that the concentration in the person's blood exceeds eighty milligrams of alcohol in one hundred millilitres of blood.

Impaired operation or care or control in Canada includes operation or care or control of a motor vehicle, vessel, or aircraft while one's ability to operate is impaired by alcohol or a drug to any degree of impairment. This DUI offence is proven by evidence of bad driving and various indicia of impairment observed such as slurred speech, difficulty with standing walking turning, red glassy glossy bloodshot eyes, dilated pupils, odor odour of an alcoholic beverage, complexion flushed face, and performance on physical tests.

The DUI offence of excess blood alcohol or over 80 is usually proven by breath tests that determine blood alcohol concentration using and approved instrument such as a Breathalyzer 900 900A or Intoxilyzer 5000C. Blood tests are used in DUI cases where breath tests are not practical to provide evidence of blood alcohol concentration.

Both Canadian DUI offences are federal criminal law offences. The Crown in Canada can prosecute a DUI in either of two ways. DUI offences are hybrid offences in Canada. The Crown may prosecute a DUI offence by indictment (roughly similar to a US felony DUI) or they may prosecute a DUI offence by summary conviction (roughly similar to a US misdemeanor). The local Crown Attorney must elect whether to proceed with the D.U.I. by indictment or by summary conviction. Until he or she elects, the DUI offence is deemed to be prosecuted by indictment. Most Canadian DUI offences are prosecuted by summary conviction.

The usual penalty for a first DUI offence in Canada is a fine. The minimum second DUI offence penalty is 14 days in jail. The minimum penalty for a third DUI is 90 days in jail. There is always a DUI driving prohibition and the local province will suspend a DUI offender's driver's licence.

If a US citizen or other non-Canadian citizen is convicted of a DUI offence in the USA or a dui offence in any country other than Canada, the DUI offender will be inadmissible to Canada on grounds of criminality, unless rehabilitated, because the DUI offence is deemed to be a Canadian DUI offence and all Canadian DUI offences are deemed indictable (similar to a US felony - see above) unless the Crown has elected to proceed with the DUI offence by summary conviction (which will never have happened because the DUI offense occurred outside Canada. The situation will be different if the DUI offence occurs in Canada and the Crown elects to proceed by summary conviction which they normally do.

Click the banner for more Canadian DUI law information.

DUI, D.U.I., or driving under the influence is, however, an important concept used in the United States. For more detailed DUI legal information click on one of the links below:

Alabama DUI  DUI in Alabama   D.U.I. in Alabama   Alabama D.U.I. Alabama dui DUI AL D.U.I. AL
Alaska DUI  DUI in Alaska   D.U.I. in Alaska   Alaska D.U.I. Alaska dui DUI AK D.U.I. AK
Alberta DUI  DUI in Alberta   D.U.I. in Alberta   Alberta D.U.I. Alberta dui DUI AB D.U.I. AB
Arizona DUI  DUI in Arizona   D.U.I. in Arizona   Arizona D.U.I. Arizona dui DUI AZ D.U.I. AZ
Arkansas DUI  DUI in Arkansas   D.U.I. in Arkansas   Arkansas D.U.I. Arkansas dui DUI AR D.U.I. AR
British Columbia DUI  DUI in British Columbia   D.U.I. in British Columbia   British Columbia D.U.I. British Columbia dui DUI BC D.U.I. BC
California DUI  DUI in California   D.U.I. in California   California D.U.I. California dui DUI CA D.U.I. CA
Colorado DUI  DUI in Colorado   D.U.I. in Colorado   Colorado D.U.I. Colorado dui DUI CO D.U.I. CO
Connecticut DUI  DUI in Connecticut   D.U.I. in Connecticut   Connecticut D.U.I. Connecticut dui DUI CT D.U.I. CT
Delaware DUI  DUI in Delaware   D.U.I. in Delaware   Delaware D.U.I. Delaware dui DUI DE D.U.I. DE
District of Columbia DUI  DUI in District of Columbia   D.U.I. in District of Columbia   District of Columbia D.U.I. District of Columbia dui DUI DC D.U.I. DC
England DUI  DUI in England   D.U.I. in England   England D.U.I. England dui DUI EN D.U.I. EN
Florida DUI  DUI in Florida   D.U.I. in Florida   Florida D.U.I. Florida dui DUI FL D.U.I. FL
Georgia DUI  DUI in Georgia   D.U.I. in Georgia   Georgia D.U.I. Georgia dui DUI GA D.U.I. GA
Hawaii DUI  DUI in Hawaii   D.U.I. in Hawaii   Hawaii D.U.I. Hawaii dui DUI HI D.U.I. HI
Idaho DUI  DUI in Idaho   D.U.I. in Idaho   Idaho D.U.I. Idaho dui DUI ID D.U.I. ID
Illinois DUI  DUI in Illinois   D.U.I. in Illinois   Illinois D.U.I. Illinois dui DUI IL D.U.I. IL
Indiana DUI  DUI in Indiana   D.U.I. in Indiana   Indiana D.U.I. Indiana dui DUI IN D.U.I. IN
Iowa DUI  DUI in Iowa   D.U.I. in Iowa   Iowa D.U.I. Iowa dui DUI IA D.U.I. IA
Kansas DUI  DUI in Kansas   D.U.I. in Kansas   Kansas D.U.I. Kansas dui DUI KS D.U.I. KS
Kentucky DUI  DUI in Kentucky   D.U.I. in Kentucky   Kentucky D.U.I. Kentucky dui DUI KY D.U.I. KY
Louisiana DUI  DUI in Louisiana   D.U.I. in Louisiana   Louisiana D.U.I. Louisiana dui DUI LA D.U.I. LA
Maine DUI  DUI in Maine   D.U.I. in Maine   Maine D.U.I. Maine dui DUI ME D.U.I. ME
Manitoba DUI  DUI in Manitoba   D.U.I. in Manitoba   Manitoba D.U.I. Manitoba dui DUI MB D.U.I. MB
Maryland DUI  DUI in Maryland   D.U.I. in Maryland   Maryland D.U.I. Maryland dui DUI MD D.U.I. MD
Massachusetts DUI  DUI in Massachusetts   D.U.I. in Massachusetts   Massachusetts D.U.I. Massachusetts dui DUI MA D.U.I. MA
Michigan DUI  DUI in Michigan   D.U.I. in Michigan   Michigan D.U.I. Michigan dui DUI MI D.U.I. MI
Minnesota DUI  DUI in Minnesota   D.U.I. in Minnesota   Minnesota D.U.I. Minnesota dui DUI MN D.U.I. MN
Mississippi DUI  DUI in Mississippi   D.U.I. in Mississippi   Mississippi D.U.I. Mississippi dui DUI MS D.U.I. MS
Missouri DUI  DUI in Missouri   D.U.I. in Missouri   Missouri D.U.I. Missouri dui DUI MO D.U.I. MO
Montana DUI  DUI in Montana   D.U.I. in Montana   Montana D.U.I. Montana dui DUI MT D.U.I. MT
Nebraska DUI  DUI in Nebraska   D.U.I. in Nebraska   Nebraska D.U.I. Nebraska dui DUI NE D.U.I. NE
Nevada DUI  DUI in Nevada   D.U.I. in Nevada   Nevada D.U.I. Nevada dui DUI NV D.U.I. NV
New Brunswick DUI  DUI in New Brunswick   D.U.I. in New Brunswick   New Brunswick D.U.I. New Brunswick dui DUI NB D.U.I. NB
New Hampshire DUI  DUI in New Hampshire   D.U.I. in New Hampshire   New Hampshire D.U.I. New Hampshire dui DUI NH D.U.I. NH
New Jersey DUI  DUI in New Jersey   D.U.I. in New Jersey   New Jersey D.U.I. New Jersey dui DUI NJ D.U.I. NJ
New Mexico DUI  DUI in New Mexico   D.U.I. in New Mexico   New Mexico D.U.I. New Mexico dui DUI NM D.U.I. NM
New York DUI  DUI in New York   D.U.I. in New York   New York D.U.I. New York dui DUI NY D.U.I. NY
Newfoundland DUI  DUI in Newfoundland   D.U.I. in Newfoundland   Newfoundland D.U.I. Newfoundland dui DUI NF D.U.I. NF
North Carolina DUI  DUI in North Carolina   D.U.I. in North Carolina   North Carolina D.U.I. North Carolina dui DUI NC D.U.I. NC
North Dakota DUI  DUI in North Dakota   D.U.I. in North Dakota   North Dakota D.U.I. North Dakota dui DUI ND D.U.I. ND
Northwest Territories DUI  DUI in Northwest Territories   D.U.I. in Northwest Territories   Northwest Territories D.U.I. Northwest Territories dui DUI NT D.U.I. NT
Nova Scotia DUI  DUI in Nova Scotia   D.U.I. in Nova Scotia   Nova Scotia D.U.I. Nova Scotia dui DUI NS D.U.I. NS
Nunavut DUI  DUI in Nunavut   D.U.I. in Nunavut   Nunavut D.U.I. Nunavut dui DUI NU D.U.I. NU
Ohio DUI  DUI in Ohio   D.U.I. in Ohio   Ohio D.U.I. Ohio dui DUI OH D.U.I. OH
Oklahoma DUI  DUI in Oklahoma   D.U.I. in Oklahoma   Oklahoma D.U.I. Oklahoma dui DUI OK D.U.I. OK
Ontario DUI  DUI in Ontario   D.U.I. in Ontario   Ontario D.U.I. Ontario dui DUI ON D.U.I. ON
Oregon DUI  DUI in Oregon   D.U.I. in Oregon   Oregon D.U.I. Oregon dui DUI OR D.U.I. OR
Pennsylvania DUI  DUI in Pennsylvania   D.U.I. in Pennsylvania   Pennsylvania D.U.I. Pennsylvania dui DUI PA D.U.I. PA
Prince Edward Island DUI  DUI in Prince Edward Island   D.U.I. in Prince Edward Island   Prince Edward Island D.U.I. Prince Edward Island dui DUI PE D.U.I. PE
Quebec DUI  DUI in Quebec   D.U.I. in Quebec   Quebec D.U.I. Quebec dui DUI QC D.U.I. QC
Rhode Island DUI  DUI in Rhode Island   D.U.I. in Rhode Island   Rhode Island D.U.I. Rhode Island dui DUI RI D.U.I. RI
Saskatchewan DUI  DUI in Saskatchewan   D.U.I. in Saskatchewan   Saskatchewan D.U.I. Saskatchewan dui DUI SK D.U.I. SK
South Carolina DUI  DUI in South Carolina   D.U.I. in South Carolina   South Carolina D.U.I. South Carolina dui DUI SC D.U.I. SC
South Dakota DUI  DUI in South Dakota   D.U.I. in South Dakota   South Dakota D.U.I. South Dakota dui DUI SD D.U.I. SD
Tennessee DUI  DUI in Tennessee   D.U.I. in Tennessee   Tennessee D.U.I. Tennessee dui DUI TN D.U.I. TN
Texas DUI  DUI in Texas   D.U.I. in Texas   Texas D.U.I. Texas dui DUI TX D.U.I. TX
Utah DUI  DUI in Utah   D.U.I. in Utah   Utah D.U.I. Utah dui DUI UT D.U.I. UT
Vermont DUI  DUI in Vermont   D.U.I. in Vermont   Vermont D.U.I. Vermont dui DUI VT D.U.I. VT
Virginia DUI  DUI in Virginia   D.U.I. in Virginia   Virginia D.U.I. Virginia dui DUI VA D.U.I. VA
Washington State DUI  DUI in Washington State   D.U.I. in Washington State   Washington State D.U.I. Washington State dui DUI WA D.U.I. WA
West Virginia DUI  DUI in West Virginia   D.U.I. in West Virginia   West Virginia D.U.I. West Virginia dui DUI WV D.U.I. WV
Wisconsin DUI  DUI in Wisconsin   D.U.I. in Wisconsin   Wisconsin D.U.I. Wisconsin dui DUI WI D.U.I. WI
Wyoming DUI  DUI in Wyoming   D.U.I. in Wyoming   Wyoming D.U.I. Wyoming dui DUI WY D.U.I. WY
Yukon DUI  DUI in Yukon   D.U.I. in Yukon   Yukon D.U.I. Yukon dui DUI YT D.U.I. YT