Georgia Babysitter Accused of DUI and Causing Wreck in Alpharetta

According to a family out of Alpharetta, the woman who takes care of their children not only stole vodka from their home but also drove drunk while their young daughter was in the car.

The hired nanny has been charged with child endangerment and DUI in Georgia after a wreck happened off of Old Milton Parkway. The woman was allegedly slurring her words and unsteady on her feet according to police.

As a Georgia DUI Lawyer, I know just how seriously the state of Georgia takes DUI. This outlook is harshened even more when there is a child involved. In today's post, I will outline the law behind Georgia DUI Child Endangerment so as to provide some more understanding to the severity of the crime.

Georgia DUI Child Endangerment

Georgia DUI Child Endangerment is defined by the same law that defines DUI in Georgia. In O.C.G.A. 40-6-391, there is a specific provision for child endangerment - (l), and the law is as follows:

A person who violates this Code section while transporting in a motor vehicle a child under the age of 14 years is guilty of the separate offense of endangering a child by driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

As you can see from the statute, Georgia Law states that for any child in a vehicle when you are charged with DUI, an additional DUI charge is placed against you. Even if you have a spotless record, you may face multiple DUI charges at the same time, for technically one DUI incident.

The easiest way to explain is for us to look at an example. Let's say there is an SUV with three children in the backseat. All three children are under the age of 14. If the driver is pulled over for a traffic infringement - such as failure to maintain lane in Georgia and is then investigated for DUI, the situation is further exacerbated by the presence of the children in the vehicle. The driver if suspected of DUI, will now be charged with what would equal four separate DUI offenses.

A Fourth Georgia DUI will automatically be classified as a felony offense. So now, aside from the typical Georgia DUI Penalties of a first or even a second DUI, there is now the unpleasant risk of being listed as a convicted felon indefinitely, the driver will face multiple years of driver's license suspension and potentially lengthy prison time.

Practice Note

The law behind DUI and Child Endangerment in Georgia is what sets this offense apart from other crimes. The possibility of multiple offenses coming out of one offense is what sets apart DUI Child Endangerment. 

However, just because someone has been accused of DUI and DUI Child Endangerment does not mean that he or she is automatically guilty. Just as with any other criminal accusation, a person is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. In DUI Child Endangerment cases, the same DUI Defenses in Georgia apply. If the initial DUI case can be disproven, then the court will have no choice but to also drop the endangerment charges because the children will have been proven to have never been in danger in the first place.

If you or a loved one has been accused of DUI or some other serious traffic violation in Georgia, please contact our offices today. We specialize in Georgia DUI Law, and a Georgia DUI Attorney can help you now.