46% of the drivers randomly stopped at the first breathalyzer checkpoint tested positive for the presence of alcohol. Agents assigned to the Alcoholimetry Unit of the Traffic Safety and Land Transport Agency (Digesett) carried out the screening tests on Monday, 12 August 2019.
In total, 65 drivers were evaluated, with 30 having traces of alcohol. Thirty-five tested negative.
Of the 30 drivers testing positive for alcohol, 17 resulted with a degree higher than the legal limit allowed by Law 63-17, which is 0.25 mgr/l in the exhaled air. 13 drivers gave levels below the legally established in that second test, so they were released.
Of the 17 drivers who exceeded the legal limit of alcohol allowed, five managed to lower their alcohol level after the waiting hours established by the transit law, and 12 were able to leave with relatives and / or relatives who were responsible for taking them to their final destination, since they did not reach the lower alcohol level, as established in Paragraph I of Article 259 of Law 63-17.
Of those who tested positive, 22 were men and eight were women. Among those who remained under observation until the levels of alcohol in their bodies dropped, 13 were men and four were women.
Article 259 of Law 63-17 states that “alcoholmeter tests shall be carried out on drivers and pedestrians who must exhale into the instrument, with the purpose of detecting the presence of alcohol in their breath to determine the degree consumed. The law establishes that when the breathlyzer test is positive, the Digesett agent may keep the driver under surveillance for up to four hours. However, the driver may leave immediately if a family member or related person takes responsibility for delivering the person to his or her destination.
The recent operation aims to educate the public about the harmful effects of driving while intoxicated. No fines were applied.
“Drivers of vehicles are prohibited from drinking alcoholic beverages while driving on public roads, or from driving while intoxicated. Persons who violate this provision will be punished with a fine equivalent to five (5) to ten (10) minimum wages of the prevailing in the centralized public sector and the reduction of the points of the license determined by the regulation, without prejudice to the provisions relating to the suspension and cancellation of the driver’s license”, as established in Article 256 of Law 63-17.
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Hoy
14 August 2019