# Drunk Driving: When a drunk person sits in the driver's seat? Or, key in the ignition? Or, car turned on? Or, car put in gear to move? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 21, 2022, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drunk-driving-when-a-drunk-person-sits-in-the-drivers-seat-or-key-in-the-ignition-or-car-turned-on-or-car-put-in-gear-to-move/958183 "2022-01-21T17:57:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2022, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drunk-driving-when-a-drunk-person-sits-in-the-drivers-seat-or-key-in-the-ignition-or-car-turned-on-or-car-put-in-gear-to-move/958183/101 "2022-01-22T13:43:38Z")
> [@Kimera757](#): > > It’s probably my urban privilege, but no taxis after 9 PM? There’s a small taxi company in a small town near me. People use it during the day I guess to go places when they don’t have access to their car (in the shop). They also provide service for public schools where there are just a few kids in an area, not enough for a bus. ETA: my 9 pm guess was generous. From their website: - Regular taxi service 7am to 5pm Monday thru Friday in the following towns and surrounding townships Vandergrift, Apollo, Leechburg, New Kensington, Arnold, Lower Burrell, Freeport, Natrona, Natrona Heights, Brackenridge, and Tarentum. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2022, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drunk-driving-when-a-drunk-person-sits-in-the-drivers-seat-or-key-in-the-ignition-or-car-turned-on-or-car-put-in-gear-to-move/958183/102 "2022-01-22T13:53:03Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > Cops was shot in several different states I now see that I should have phrased that differently. mmm ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2022, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drunk-driving-when-a-drunk-person-sits-in-the-drivers-seat-or-key-in-the-ignition-or-car-turned-on-or-car-put-in-gear-to-move/958183/103 "2022-01-22T14:03:33Z")
> [@Kimera757](#): > > If I needed to go somewhere at 3 AM, probably due to an emergency, I would have to call a cab or use Uber/Lyft. There’s a “joke” that is pervasive amongst law enforcement that I’ve dealt with that states that the only people driving at 3 am are cops, Uber drivers, and drunks. So, If you are pulled over during the wee hours of the morning, and are not ferrying passengers around, don’t be surprised that the police are going to begin the encounter presuming that you are intoxicated. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2022, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drunk-driving-when-a-drunk-person-sits-in-the-drivers-seat-or-key-in-the-ignition-or-car-turned-on-or-car-put-in-gear-to-move/958183/104 "2022-01-22T14:29:28Z")
> [@Kimera757](#): > > Isn’t it dangerous to have a bar in an area with no cabs? (Coming from an area with public transit, I’ve never seen this situation in real life.) The small Saskatchewan town where I grew up had two bars and no cabs. I remember visiting my grandmother in the larger town where she lived, 40 miles away, and taking a cab with her. Big city! If you had a law that there could only be bars in towns with cabs, most of rural Saskatchewan would be dry. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2022, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drunk-driving-when-a-drunk-person-sits-in-the-drivers-seat-or-key-in-the-ignition-or-car-turned-on-or-car-put-in-gear-to-move/958183/105 "2022-01-22T14:47:28Z")
> [@Moriarty](#): > > > [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > > > If the accused can show he didn’t get into the driver seat with the intention of setting the car in motion, that’s a defence. > > Ignorance fought! I was surprised to learn recently that Canada is incredibly strict with allowing people with DUIs to even enter the country, so I’m surprised they are more lenient on this point than in the states. It may have something to do with the fact that in much of Canada, for about half the year trying to walk home could kill you, especially if you’re drunk and possibly disoriented. ❄❄❄🥶🥶🥶 ❄❄❄ sleeping it off in the back seat is a fair compromise between public safety and personal safety. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2022, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drunk-driving-when-a-drunk-person-sits-in-the-drivers-seat-or-key-in-the-ignition-or-car-turned-on-or-car-put-in-gear-to-move/958183/106 "2022-01-22T15:03:22Z")
> [@Kimera757](#): > > Isn’t it dangerous to have a bar in an area with no cabs? If so, all of rural Wisconsin is a danger zone. Here, a village of 100 people may have 2-4 taverns. ---
**Author:** ![Kimera757](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kimera757/32/3765_2.png) [@Kimera757](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimera757)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2022, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drunk-driving-when-a-drunk-person-sits-in-the-drivers-seat-or-key-in-the-ignition-or-car-turned-on-or-car-put-in-gear-to-move/958183/107 "2022-01-22T15:24:43Z")
That sounds like a lot. You would think there would be a bar-hired “designated driver” in each of these cases (a very part-time portion of their job, I assume). Just put the car fee on their bar tab. Designated drivers means repeat business! ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2022, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drunk-driving-when-a-drunk-person-sits-in-the-drivers-seat-or-key-in-the-ignition-or-car-turned-on-or-car-put-in-gear-to-move/958183/108 "2022-01-22T15:29:47Z")
Drunk or not, isn’t it illegal to sleep in your car in most places anyway? If you are asleep in the back, and a cop comes to tell you to move it along, how will you do that if you are too impaired to drive? ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2022, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drunk-driving-when-a-drunk-person-sits-in-the-drivers-seat-or-key-in-the-ignition-or-car-turned-on-or-car-put-in-gear-to-move/958183/109 "2022-01-22T15:39:15Z")
> [@k9bfriender](#): > > Drunk or not, isn’t it illegal to sleep in your car in most places anyway? There are people who live in their car. Are they breaking the law? ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2022, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drunk-driving-when-a-drunk-person-sits-in-the-drivers-seat-or-key-in-the-ignition-or-car-turned-on-or-car-put-in-gear-to-move/958183/110 "2022-01-22T15:43:34Z")
> [@Kimera757](#): > > You would think there would be a bar-hired “designated driver” in each of these cases (a very part-time portion of their job, I assume). Just put the car fee on their bar tab. Designated drivers means repeat business! And if the designated driver, an employee of the bar, gets in an accident while driving them home, the bar is potentially liable. I doubt most bar owners would want to run that risk. Plus, if the point is that there are no cabs, how does the designated driver get back to the bar? ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2022, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drunk-driving-when-a-drunk-person-sits-in-the-drivers-seat-or-key-in-the-ignition-or-car-turned-on-or-car-put-in-gear-to-move/958183/111 "2022-01-22T15:54:31Z")
Depends on where they are parking. Many cities have laws against it. If they are living in their car, they either know how to stealth camp, know where it is legal to do so, or they get interrupted in their sleep often by a cop telling them to move it along. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2022, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drunk-driving-when-a-drunk-person-sits-in-the-drivers-seat-or-key-in-the-ignition-or-car-turned-on-or-car-put-in-gear-to-move/958183/112 "2022-01-22T16:31:21Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > Some time ago, I read of an incident: Guy rides his bicycle to a bar. Gets drunk. Realizes he’s too drunk to ride his bike home. > > So he was _walking_ his bike home, on the sidewalk. He got arrested for DUI, just because he was operating the vehicle. ETA: And the court upheld that. > > This is an example of the case that the laws don’t allow an “out” for people who do the _right_ thing. I was surprised to see that about 20 states allow for DUI on a bicycle. In my state it has to be a motor vehicle. There has to be a motor for it to be a DUI. > [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > > [@Moriarty](#): > > > > I don’t mean to sound like I’m disagreeing with you. I recognize that you are correct. But it does seem like Canada considers a DUI to be a more serious offense, and so your typical American mook with a misdemeanor DUI on his record is actually a serious criminal in your country > > Understood. It’s a criminal offence, and we don’t distinguish between misdemeanours and felonies. > > The reason I mentioned it is that I’ve seen comments before that make it sound like Canada is singling out impaired treatment for special treatment as a restriction on entry. That’s not the case. It’s that criminal records generally are a bar to easy entry. I wonder if it would be treated differently if the conviction was from New Jersey. Here it’s a traffic offense (with serious consequences) not a criminal conviction. As to the definition of operating this has been recently re-affirmed in my state. Here is the case and it cites multiple other previous decisions if anyone is interested. > **[STATE OF NEW JERSEY v. JOHN A. JEDRA](https://law.justia.com/cases/new-jersey/appellate-division-unpublished/2020/a1154-18.html)** > > STATE OF NEW JERSEY v. JOHN A. JEDRA ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2022, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drunk-driving-when-a-drunk-person-sits-in-the-drivers-seat-or-key-in-the-ignition-or-car-turned-on-or-car-put-in-gear-to-move/958183/113 "2022-01-22T17:23:19Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > I wonder if it would be treated differently if the conviction was from New Jersey. Here it’s a traffic offense (with serious consequences) not a criminal conviction. Nope. It’s the description of the offence that matters. If it would be a Criminal Code offence in Canada, doesn’t matter what the place where the offence occurred called it. There’s a need for uniformity at the border, plus, Canadian border control officers can’t be expected to know how each of the 50 states treats the offence, as well as how other countries in the world treat it. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2022, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drunk-driving-when-a-drunk-person-sits-in-the-drivers-seat-or-key-in-the-ignition-or-car-turned-on-or-car-put-in-gear-to-move/958183/114 "2022-01-22T17:23:23Z")
> [@k9bfriender](#): > > Drunk or not, isn’t it illegal to sleep in your car in most places anyway? What do they expect me to do while my wife is in the store shopping? That’s prime nap time. ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2022, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drunk-driving-when-a-drunk-person-sits-in-the-drivers-seat-or-key-in-the-ignition-or-car-turned-on-or-car-put-in-gear-to-move/958183/115 "2022-01-22T18:00:21Z")
> [@Moriarty](#): > > It really does suck that people who try to “do the right thing” by getting in their car but taking a nap, or pulling over to sober up, can still get arrested and charged. Neither one of those things is “doing the right thing”. Doing the right thing is either having alternate transportation or not drinking to excess. The OWI laws in most states are pretty explicit that you are not to be inside a vehicle with the ability to operate it (possession of the keys) if you are intoxicated. And those laws give police very little discretion presently. It’s not like 30+ years ago when we we sometimes could get or give a drunk a ride after finding them in their vehicle. Doesn’t work like that any more. So don’t get bucky at the cops about it. I won’t join those that say if you don’t like it try to get the laws changed. With how many people we have killed by drunk drivers in this country I don’t see any reason not to be draconian about this. It’s real easy to avoid an OWI/DWI pinch! I have been to many accidents that were caused by goddamned drunks. It’s a horrible scene especially when innocents are killed. During my first career as a Dep when I was on the highway it happened almost every night. And, BTW, everyone on these boards knows I like to imbibe on my personal time. But I do so at home and stay the fuck away from my vehicles. ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2022, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drunk-driving-when-a-drunk-person-sits-in-the-drivers-seat-or-key-in-the-ignition-or-car-turned-on-or-car-put-in-gear-to-move/958183/116 "2022-01-22T18:07:51Z")
To sleep in your car while drunk all you have to do is hide the keys away from the car. Trick is remembering where you put them when you sober up. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2022, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drunk-driving-when-a-drunk-person-sits-in-the-drivers-seat-or-key-in-the-ignition-or-car-turned-on-or-car-put-in-gear-to-move/958183/117 "2022-01-22T18:08:15Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > The car is in your garage/driveway, it is in your control, you have the keys, it is trivial to make use of it. > > If you get drunk at home are you guilty of a DUI because you could drive? Exactly that argument was made by one of the MPs in the Canadian Parliament when this provision was put in force in the 1950s. The answer was that “care or control” is defined by the Criminal Code, and this situation would not be caught by the provision. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2022, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drunk-driving-when-a-drunk-person-sits-in-the-drivers-seat-or-key-in-the-ignition-or-car-turned-on-or-car-put-in-gear-to-move/958183/118 "2022-01-22T18:28:01Z")
Tony “I’m a Hall of Famer” La Russa’s SUV was running when cops found it at the side of the road with damage. I seem to recall cases where passed-out drunks were found in vehicles with fresh-appearing damage parked (sometimes badly) with the engine turned off. It sounds legitimate to cite those people for a DUI too. Maybe there are legions of people who innocently sleep off a drunk in the back seat of their car. In the instances I’ve heard about\* they’re dozing in the driver’s seat. \*my Cops episodes are my cite. ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Mouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mighty_mouse/32/7776_2.png) [@Mighty\_Mouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Mouse)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2022, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drunk-driving-when-a-drunk-person-sits-in-the-drivers-seat-or-key-in-the-ignition-or-car-turned-on-or-car-put-in-gear-to-move/958183/119 "2022-01-22T18:47:45Z")
Amazingly this is the second thread on the SDMB recently where I’m starting to develop more sympathy with the police. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2022, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drunk-driving-when-a-drunk-person-sits-in-the-drivers-seat-or-key-in-the-ignition-or-car-turned-on-or-car-put-in-gear-to-move/958183/120 "2022-01-22T19:00:06Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > I seem to recall cases where passed-out drunks were found in vehicles with fresh-appearing damage parked (sometimes badly) with the engine turned off. > > It sounds legitimate to cite those people for a DUI too. Thanks for that. I was going to make a similar comment yesterday but couldn’t decide how to put it. Unless these drunks could prove that the vehicle was being pushed, surely they were driving under the influence at some point. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drunk-driving-when-a-drunk-person-sits-in-the-drivers-seat-or-key-in-the-ignition-or-car-turned-on-or-car-put-in-gear-to-move/958183.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/drunk-driving-when-a-drunk-person-sits-in-the-drivers-seat-or-key-in-the-ignition-or-car-turned-on-or-car-put-in-gear-to-move/958183.md?page=7)