You are a bit drunk after a good week and you are not supposed to drive. As an adult, you make the good choice of walking to your parked car, reclining the seat and taking a nap until you are sober enough to drive home safely. You believe you are doing the most intelligent decision.
Regrettably, a simple responsive judgment as required by the law of Georgia can lead to a pair of handcuffs and a visit to the Fulton County jail.
You do not even need to be driving or even awake to get arrested because of DUI in Atlanta. Actual Physical Control is a legal doctrine that is used by law enforcement officers to arrest sleeping people. This trap is now more than ever before an easy one to fall in with the emergence of electric vehicles (EVs) and smart cars technology.
Providing an insight into Actual Physical Control.
According to the DUI law (O.C.G.A.40-6-391) of Georgia, it is prohibited to be under the influence of alcohol or drugs and operate or be in factual physical control of any moving vehicle.
Actual Physical Control APC is merely the state of being able to operate the vehicle on the spot, with or without it being the case that you are actually doing it at that moment. The main question that an arresting officer is asking is not whether the car is moving or not, but whether you can easily cause the car to move.
In the past, there were various factors that were considered by the courts to find APC:
Were the keys in the ignition?
Was the engine running?
Was the driver occupying the driver seat or the back seat?
Was the car parked safely in a lot or on the shoulder of I-285 putting the lives of other motorists at risk?
When you were asleep in the driver seat, and the engine was running to keep the heater on then you had nearly the guarantee of an APC charge.
The EV Complicating: Camp Mode and Smart Keys.
Actual Physical Control has been made very challenging due to the shift to modern smart cars and EVs.
In a conventional car, it was easy to tell when the engine was switched off or on, by simply turning a key in an ignition. That is a totally blurred line today. You are likely to have a smartphone that doubles as your key in case you have a modern luxury car or an EV. In case you are asleep in the back seat with your phone in your pocket, the proximity sensors on the car identify the key. The car is already opened, is warmed up and can easily be driven as soon as one steps on the brake pedal.
In addition, EV comfort features may provoke an arrest. Indicatively, the Camp Mode or Dog Mode in Tesla can have the climate control and infotainment systems operate all the time without the engine being turned on. A glowing center console screen and a running climate control system mean to an Atlanta police officer walking around the periphery of a parking deck that the vehicle is on. When you are indoors and under the influence they will say that you are at the helm of that.
Defending an Actual Physical Control Charge.
APC cases do not entail bad driving, weaving, and accidents as such, and thus, demand a very specific defense. The experienced DUI Lawyer Atlanta will instantly pay attention to your intention.
The legislation is meant to prosecute individuals who threaten the society. A case against you becomes weak in case your attorney can establish that you had taken self-removal as a menace in a positive way. The major defense arguments are:
Place: Did you occupy a special parking space legalistically or was it a stop at a green light?
Position: Did you sleep in the back seat or passenger seat, and it was impossible to suddenly begin driving?
Key Placement: Did you leave your phone or key fob locked up somewhere in a bag in the trunk or was the device left in the cupholder?
To beat an APC charge, it is important to prove that you were secretly using the vehicle as a temporary shelter, and not as a means of transportation.
The importance of Specialized Representation.
Most motorists who have been charged with APC are convinced that they can evade the charge in court by telling the judge that they were in the act of doing the right thing. This happens daily to judges and prosecutors and the statute does not allow any leeway just because the car was not in motion.
It takes a fine legal skill to negotiate the crossroads of the rigid DUI policy in Georgia and the latest automotive technology. James Yeargan is a lawyer who you can trust as your Atlanta DUI lawyer should you be accused of the same offense after attempting to sleep it off. He knows how to unravel the assumptions that the arresting officer is making and construct a defense that shows that you had no intention to drive the car.
Please do not give a good choice a life sentence of a criminal. The best step to take to put up with a charge of Actual Physical Control and save your future is to get an experienced DUI Attorney Atlanta.
