It’s Hard Not to Drive in Salt Lake City
By James Bradshaw | Published on October 21, 2011 | 0 Comments
In the United States, the car still seems to be king. Many large cities lack dependable transportation systems, and Salt Lake City is no exception. According to James Bradshaw, a DUI lawyer in Salt Lake City with the firm Brown, Bradshaw, and Moffat, there is a correlation between DUIs in Utah and the lacking public transit network.
Bradshaw explains that Salt Lake City has an inflexible and erratic cab system, so that area residents cannot confidently rely on taxis when they need to get places without using their cars. Unlike other major metro areas, Salt Lake City’s cabs are also far too few, leaving a big deficit of available transportation for people even when they are resigned to taking the less dependable route. Then there’s the problem with public transportation. Bradshaw says that there is appreciably limited access to light rail, buses, and other forms of mass transit. Fortunately, that’s slated to change: There are big plans to improve public transportation in the future, to the point where Salt Lake City could become a national leader in municipal transit. For the time being, however, when somebody needs to get somewhere, there are few options other than to get behind the wheel. That means that when somebody is intoxicated and they need to get home, they’ll too often drive—and citing the lack of adequate public transportation is never any excuse, according to a Salt Lake City DUI lawyer.
Under certain circumstances, says Bradshaw, a defendant accused of a DUI could plead necessity—meaning they absolutely had to drive because of extenuating circumstances requiring them to. Necessity means the defendant heard their house was on fire, or that their child was in trouble—grave dangers—so that despite being inebriated, it was worth the risk of driving to help avoid disaster. Because such a situation is rarely the case when an intoxicated person gets behind the wheel, it’s rarely a viable defense, says Bradshaw.
To crack down on the drunk driving in Salt Lake City, police patrols have taken to milling about outside bars, waiting for intoxicated individuals to get in and start their vehicles. Then, after the patron has pulled out of the parking lot, the police will do a traffic stop even if they were not driving erratically. The police will cite a minor traffic violation, and from there they will have the driver do a breathalyzer test. From the perspective of a Salt Lake City DUI lawyer, therefore, it’s a very risky proposition to visit a local bar and expect to drive away without being stopped by the police—whether you had one drink, many drinks, or none at all.
This phenomenon can be frustrating for a practicing Salt Lake City DUI lawyer because his clients really don’t have an alternative to using their car if they want to head out for a drink. But taking precautions is always advisable, of course. For the time being, to go out to a bar and stay safe—both from injury to oneself or others, and also from arrest—it is necessary to accept the inadequate public transit network in Salt Lake City.
*Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. You should not rely on this article as a legal opinion on any specific facts or circumstances, and you should not act upon this information without seeking professional counsel. Publication of this article and your receipt of this article does not create an attorney-client relationship.