RI DUI Blog

Drinking alcohol in the winter does not actually warm you up. Alcohol dilates the peripheral blood vessels near your skin, which makes your cheeks feel warm while pulling blood and heat away from your core, so your core body temperature drops. That is why winter drinking raises the risk of hypothermia along with the risk […]

Rhode Island DUI statistics show a real death toll: of the 52 car accident deaths in Rhode Island in 2014, 18 involved alcohol, which is 34 percent of all car accident fatalities, and the state has recorded 354 deaths in alcohol-related incidents since 2002. Nationally, 9,967 people died in drunk driving accidents in 2014, about […]

Boating under the influence, or BUI, is illegal in Rhode Island, and police are enforcing it harder than ever. The blood alcohol limit on the water is 0.08 percent, the same as for driving, and the charge applies to any vessel, from a yacht to a fishing boat to a personal watercraft. A first offense […]

The controlling breathalyzer refusal case is Birchfield v. North Dakota (2016), where the U.S. Supreme Court held that warrantless breath test refusals can be penalized but warrantless blood draw refusals cannot be criminalized. In Rhode Island, refusing the chemical breath test under RIGL § 31-27-2.1 triggers a civil license suspension, not a separate criminal offense, […]

Fighting a Rhode Island DUI is not a single defense — it is a sequence of decisions and motion filings that compound across the case. The decisions made in week one (refusal hearing, retention of counsel) set the trajectory. The motions filed in months two and three (suppression, calibration challenges) determine whether the case collapses […]

Rhode Island enforces a zero-tolerance BAC threshold of 0.02% for drivers under 21 — meaning even a single drink, or sometimes residual alcohol from a recent drink several hours earlier, can trigger a per se DUI violation. The penalty framework largely mirrors the standard adult framework, but the practical consequences extend further: campus disciplinary action, […]

A Rhode Island DUI defense attorney does more than show up at arraignment. The case unfolds across two parallel tracks (Traffic Tribunal and District Court) with separate deadlines on each. The 10-day Traffic Tribunal hearing window starts at arrest. Pretrial motion practice runs through months two and three. Plea negotiation happens at the leverage point […]

Rhode Island's ignition interlock law (RIGL § 31-27-2.8) requires installation of an approved ignition interlock device on the vehicles of certain DUI offenders before driving privileges are restored. The device measures breath alcohol before allowing the engine to start, and intermittently while the vehicle is in motion. For most defendants, the interlock requirement adds 1 […]

You can get a DUI in far more than a car. In most states, anything with a motor or a drive train qualifies, and people have been charged with driving under the influence on a Zamboni, a motorized wheelchair, a ride-on lawn mower, a horse, and even an inflatable raft. Whether an unusual vehicle counts […]

Beware of American drinking culture because alcohol has become the default at social gatherings, family events, and workplace functions, and that normalization feeds peer pressure and makes DUIs more common. You do not need to drink to have a good time, and if you do drink, have someone drive you home or take a cab. […]

In Rhode Island, campus police are usually equivalent to regular police officers. Since 2011, when campus officers at Brown University, Rhode Island College, the University of Rhode Island, and the Rhode Island School of Design were granted peace officer status, they can search, arrest, and detain suspects on campus, including for underage drinking and drunk […]

Men are still arrested for drunk driving more often than women, but the gap is closing. FBI data from 2003 to 2012 showed a 21% rise in drunk driving arrests of women, up to 211,000, while arrests of men fell by about 17%, from 780,000 to 650,000. Quick answer: Men still account for far more […]

A Rhode Island DUI conviction has consequences that extend well beyond the criminal court — particularly for students. The campus disciplinary process operates separately from the criminal case. Financial aid, transcript notations, study abroad eligibility, and graduate school admissions all trigger off the conviction record. For students pursuing professional careers, the disclosure obligations attached to […]

During a Rhode Island DUI stop, be respectful, provide your license, registration, and proof of insurance, and say nothing about what you have had to drink. Field sobriety tests and the roadside preliminary breath test are voluntary and can be declined. The chemical test at the station is different: refusing it triggers an automatic 6 […]

DUI expungement in Rhode Island is not available. RIGL § 12-1.3-2 specifically excludes DUI convictions from the state's expungement statute. The conviction stays on the criminal record permanently — visible to background checks, professional licensing boards, employer screenings, and graduate school admissions for life. Understanding this rule shapes the entire defense strategy on a Rhode […]

Alcoholism Is alcoholism genetic? The answer is yes and no. Studies show children of alcoholics are about four times more likely to become alcoholics themselves, but more than half of all children of alcoholics never do, because genetics is only one of the factors that determines whether someone becomes an alcoholic. Quick answer: Alcoholism has […]

A DUI arrest as a University of Rhode Island student carries the standard Rhode Island DUI penalty package plus a separate set of campus-side consequences that can be larger than the criminal sentence itself. URI's student conduct code treats off-campus criminal conduct as grounds for disciplinary review. Financial aid, housing, athletics eligibility, and study-abroad privileges […]

A Rhode Island DUI conviction triggers a chain of insurance consequences that play out over the next three to seven years. Your insurer is notified. Your rate climbs 50% to 200%. You are reclassified into a high-risk underwriting tier. The DMV requires a SR-22 high-risk certificate on file before reinstating your license, and that SR-22 […]

The Ways Drinking Affects Your Ability To Drive Drinking impairs the mental and physical abilities you need to drive safely. It blurs vision and depth perception, makes it harder to track your position in the lane, slows fine and gross motor skills, weakens focus, and clouds judgment. Even a person who says they do not […]

Alcohol causes memory loss by interfering with the hippocampus, the part of the brain responsible for recording memories. Alcohol is a central nervous system depressant, and consumption in any amount can impact cognitive functioning. Researchers even have a name for the condition it causes: Alcohol Related Brain Impairment, or ARBI. Quick answer: Drinking affects how […]

Looking Out For Signs Of Alcohol Abuse The signs of alcohol abuse fall into three categories, physical, mental, and social, and most of the time a person shows a combination of all three. The National Institute Of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism outlines four symptoms that generally denote an alcoholic: craving, loss of control, physical dependence, […]

Ten NFL players charged with DUI in the two years before this post were Michael Floyd, Dak Prescott, Troy Hill, Alvin Bailey, Damontre Moore, Josh Huff, Austin Seferian-Jenkins, Jonathon Williams, TJ McDonald, and Shiloh Keo. Most of the arrests came in 2016, and the outcomes ranged from acquittal to probation, license suspension, and NFL suspensions. […]

The six jobs where you are most likely to become an alcoholic are mining, construction, the service industry, arts and entertainment, utilities, and wholesale trade. In the studies behind this list, alcohol abuse means consuming more than five drinks in one sitting. Quick answer: Miners are almost 20% more likely to have an alcohol abuse […]

The short answer: most Rhode Island DUIs are misdemeanors, but a third DUI within ten years (a lookback extended from five years on July 1, 2025) is a felony under RIGL § 31-27-2(d)(3) — and any DUI causing a death is felony manslaughter under § 31-27-2.2. Knowing the felony threshold matters because the consequences scale […]

The main benefits of hiring an experienced Middletown DUI lawyer like Chad Bank, Esq. are knowledge of the law and the local courts, help negotiating a plea bargain to a lesser charge, case options you may never have considered, and a free, no obligation consultation. With a lawyer who has handled hundreds of Rhode Island […]

Rhode Island's penalty framework for repeat DUI offenses is layered and unforgiving. A second DUI within 10 years of a prior conviction carries mandatory jail — at least 10 days, with 48 consecutive hours minimum. A third DUI within the same 10-year window crosses into felony territory under RIGL § 31-27-2(d)(3), with mandatory state prison […]

Rhode Island DUI penalties have tightened materially since 2014, with the legislature amending § 31-27-2 and related provisions multiple times. The trend is unidirectional — toward stricter penalties, longer license suspensions, broader ignition interlock requirements, and tougher refusal consequences. For anyone facing a Rhode Island DUI charge today, the penalty package is meaningfully heavier than […]

Rhode Island DUI laws rank in the middle nationally — a 2018 WalletHub comparative study placed Rhode Island 34th strictest in the country. That ranking is often cited as evidence that Rhode Island goes "easy" on DUI offenders. The reality is more nuanced: Rhode Island's misdemeanor penalties are middling on a national scale, but the […]