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How You Can Be Charged With DUI Child Endangerment
If you’ve been out with your family and had a little too much to drink, you should think twice before getting behind the wheel — or you could be charged with child endangerment.
When a driver is charged with a DUI and has one or more children under the age of fourteen in the car, he or she can also be charged with the separate offense of “endangering a child while driving under the influence.”
DUI Child Endangerment
In Georgia, when children are present in a car with a drunk driver, the police can file child endangerment charges in addition to a DUI charge.
A separate and additional charge can be filed for every child present in the car. For example, if you’re charged with a DUI and you had two kids in the car with you, you could also face two counts of child endangerment.
Sentencing and Punishment for DUI Child Endangerment in Georgia
If convicted of both a standard DUI and a DUI with child endangerment, a court will sentence the driver for both DUIs. Each charge will be treated as a separate crime, even where both charges arise from the same event.
For example, if you were charged with a DUI and two counts of a DUI with child endangerment during the course of one traffic stop, you could be deemed a habitual violator if you are convicted of all three offenses.
The fines and penalties in Georgia for a DUI with child endangerment are as follows:
- Conviction of a first offense is punishable by up to one year in jail and a maximum fine of $1,000. However, if a person is also convicted of child endangerment, the judge has discretion to impose additional jail time.
- Conviction of a second offense is punishable by up to one year in jail and a maximum fine of $5,000.
- Conviction of a third offense is a felony punishable by up to five years in jail and a fine of at least $10,000.
DUI cases are complex. DUI cases involving child endangerment are incredibly complex. If you are facing a DUI offense that may involve a child endangerment issue, it could be in your best interest to speak to an experienced DUI attorney.
Related Resources:
- A Quick Guide to Georgia’s DUI Laws (FindLaw’s Atlanta DUI Law Blog)
- 5 Bad Moves That Can Make Your DUI Worse (FindLaw’s Atlanta DUI Law Blog)
- Atlanta DUI / DWI Lawyers, Atlanta DUI / DWI Attorneys and Law Firms – Georgia (FindLaw)
2013-04-09 12:45:27
Source: http://atlantaduinews.com/2013/04/how-you-can-be-charged-with-dui-child-endangerment.html
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