Driving under the influence is the most common criminal offense in the U.S.
Operating any motor vehicle under the influence is a serious crime and could put you or someone else’s life in danger, it could also be fatal.
When you are pulled over and assumed under the influence, you must give a blood, urine, or breathalyzer test otherwise your license will be taken away and suspended.
A DUI charge results in lots of fees, fines, community service hours, education, and even jail time.
Aside from criminal consequences, you may feel embarrassment or shame in your personal relationships or your reputation.
You may also experience a decrease in self confidence due to these things.
A DUI can also affect your ability to have a job especially if you received the DUI using a company car such as lyft or uber.
Even if you were using your personal car, the time and hours put into resolving a DUI issue may affect your ability to abide by your work schedule, resulting in less hours which means less money or it may even lead to you being fired and forced to search for another job.
If you are a student and you are applying for scholarships you will no longer be able to receive one as most schools do not grant scholarships to students with DUIs and if you already have a scholarship, it will more than likely be taken away and you will have to pay student loans in full.
This will also appear when you get a background check for a home/apartment rental or when applying to school.
Your license will more than likely be suspended and this can last up to two years making it difficult to complete tasks that require a vehicle.
If you are granted the ability to still use your license, your car insurance will be increased and your current insurer may terminate your coverage leaving you to find a different insurance plan.
Another very common reason that you do not want to receive a DUI is because during the process, you could hurt yourself or someone else.
This can lead to expensive hospital bills, physical therapy, or even death.
Dealing with something you inflicted upon yourself is one thing considering you have to heal and more than likely pay a lot of medical expenses, but living everyday knowing that you hurt someone else can be extremely challenging.
Hurting someone else or killing them could result in jail time, you could even face a life sentence for a DUI murder charge.
Aside from the time you will receive from hurting someone else or taking their life from them, you will have to live with the emotional and mental distresses that you have taken someone from their parents, their partner, their friend, their child, etc.
This is not something easy to move on from and can require years of jail time and therapy.
All in all, it is not smart to drive under the influence even if you feel like you can drive.
Receiving a DUI will change your life for the worse and can cause a multitude of complication.