The Passenger Seat Trap: Turning on the A/C Outside a Buckhead Club

The Passenger Seat Trap: Turning on the A/C Outside a Buckhead Club

The A/C is off in a Buckhead Club when the rear seats are on-board.Turning on the A/C outside a Buckhead Club, when it’s on-board.

It’s a hot and humid July evening in Buckhead. You’ve been out with friends and as a good Samaritan, you’ve arranged to have one of you go home.As a good Samaritan, you’ve decided to have one of you drive home safely after spending the evening out with friends. Your friend runs back into the club to retrieve a lost cell phone or tab, and you go to the car to get out of the heat. You get in the front seat, insert the key in the ignition and turn the air conditioning to maximum. You aren’t going anywhere on the vehicle, it’s in park, and you’re just waiting for your ride. A flashlight taps on the window and in a matter of minutes, it’s time to go outside for an FST.

Many in Atlanta find it a common and heart-wrenching fact of life. Many people think that driving is necessary for a DUI, but not so in Georgia. The State’s laws permit arrest for being in “actual physical control” of a motor vehicle while intoxicated. That is, if an officer determines you can operate the car at this moment, you are legally “driving” for purposes of a DUI charge. Atlanta Police has a policy of seizing vehicles whenever they are captured in the driver’s seat, with the engine running for running temperature in the car, even if the vehicle was stationary and moved an inch.

The term “actual physical control” is notoriously ambiguous, and thus redraws a wide net for law enforcement. Courts in Fulton County review a number of factors to determine who is in control: Location of the keys, Location of the individual, and Engine operation. A prosecutor could claim you were in control of the car even if you had your hand on the ignition key but were sitting in the passenger seat. Oftentimes, the person was on the right track to make a good decision by waiting for a sober driver when they themselves get stuck by a “technicality” in the law.

If it’s an actual physical control case, it’s a very strategic defense that’s involved with the lack of intent to operate the vehicle. That’s where a knowledgeable Atlanta DUI Lawyer comes in handy. It’s important to present evidence that the vehicle was not used for transportation, but as a shelter for a strong defense. We examine points such as the location of the seats, the location of a designated driver, and even the outside temperature to demonstrate that the only focus was on comfort and not operation. A jury will be very easy to get the wrong impression, if no professional understands these nuances.

Attorney James Yeargan has been working on behalf of his clients for years trying to protect them from these “parked car” DUI’s, knowing that a bad decision about using the A/C shouldn’t become a life sentence. The cases will typically depend on the individual observations of the arresting officer and if they adhered to protocol in the arrest. A DUI Attorney Atlanta is familiar with how to challenge officers in their subjective interpretation of what constitutes control and can file a motion to suppress evidence in cases where the initial encounter was not sufficiently probable cause, and/or the arrest itself was not sufficiently probable cause.

Once you are charged after just trying to stay cool while waiting for a ride in Buckhead or Midtown, you will need to move quickly. The administrative penalties for your license start the day you are arrested, and you only have 30 days to defend your license. Never let a good judgment that says wait for a driver to become a belief due to a misunderstanding of the law. If you’ve been arrested and charged with a DUI in Atlanta, the best way to ensure your side of the story is heard and your future is safe from the trap set by the “passenger seat” is to have an elite Atlanta DUI Lawyer such as James Yeargan on your team.