Their "You Drink and Drive. You Lose" campaign propagates the misunderstanding of drunk driving law. In fact, in every state it is perfectly legal to drink and drive.
The Texas Penal Code Section 49.04 ("Driving While Intoxicated") states:
A person commits an offense if the person is intoxicated while operating a motor vehicle in a public place
This requires: (1) A person; (2) commits an offense; (3) intoxicated; (4) operating; (5) motor vehicle; and (6) public place.
Of course, the next step would be to look for the definitions of each of those words: What is a person, what does commit mean, intoxication, operation, etc. The important one in this code is intoxication which is defined at the beginning of the section, 49.01 as:
(A) not having the normal use of mental or physical faculties by reason of the introduction of alcohol, a controlled substance, a drug, a dangerous drug, a combination of two or more of those substances, or any other substance into the body; or (B) having an alcohol concentration of 0.08 or more.
The prosecutors can go about this in three ways: showing that you don't have the normal use of your mental faculties by introduction of alcohol (we'll limit it in this case), or you don't have the normal use of your physical faculties by introduction of alcohol, or having an alcohol concentration above the prescribed limit.
What the NHTSA would have you believe is that you can be arrested simply for drinking then driving. Imagine if the penal code had this as the law:
A person commits an offense if the person drinks and then drives a motor vehicle in a public place.
I'm being generous by adding more elements than the NHTSA scare ads depict. The result is still very easy to meet because the definition of intoxication, a very difficult definition to prove, has been removed from the elements. What is more there is now a question of how long after you drink should you wait to drive so that you don't "lose"?
A prosecutor has to bring more to the table than the fact that you drank. You have to actually be a threat to the public because you are driving without the normal use of your mental or physical faculties.
When a Judge recently ordered a man to install a locking device on his car ignition because he drank a six pack of beer per night (with no facts that indicate the person drove while intoxicated - possible civil rights violation?), it seems that this misinformation is causing problems. The government is trying to victimize the mere fact that someone drinks alcohol. Appalling.
When you head out tonight to your favorite restaurant, your neighborhood bar, or the liquor store do not drive if you're intoxicated. However, don't think twice about driving if you've just had a drink with your meal and know that you haven't reached your limit. Be safe, be smart, and you won't lose just because you've had a drink or two.
