Tennessee Criminal Lawyer Blog

DUI cases are a pretty common occurrence today, but it is not every day you see someone charged with a DUI for operating a forklift. A man from Fairbanks, Alaska pleaded guilty recently to just that after police caught him operating the machinery while drunk a couple of weeks ago as he was trying to pull two trucks out of a ditch. Apparently the man’s friend had gotten his truck stuck in a ditch which prompted the man to attempt to use his truck to free his friend’s vehicle. Unfortunately, the man’s truck also became stuck in the ditch after he attempted to pull his friend out, prompting the man to seek out the forklift to free both vehicles. As the man arrived with the forklift, the police showed up and, determining that both men were intoxicated, arrested both the man and his friend.

Tennessee’s DUI law states that a person can be guilty of DUI if they are operating an automobile or any other motor-driven vehicle on any public road, street, alley, parking lot, or any other place frequented by the public. As has been discussed before on this blog, the wording of the statute means that a DUI can be committed while operating not only an automobile, but also a go-cart, lawnmower, or even motorized bar stool. Since a forklift is motor-driven, it would also be covered by Tennessee’s statute. The penalty for a DUI charge is contained in T.C.A. §55-10-403 and increases with each successive DUI charge. The penalty for a first-time DUI offense is a possible fine of $350 to $1500, up to eleven months and twenty-nine days of incarceration, suspension of the offender’s drivers license for one year, and assignment to a roadway litter clean-up crew for a period of twenty-four hours to be served in three shifts of eight hours each.

It is never a good idea to drive a vehicle while intoxicated. It is an even worse idea to get that vehicle stuck in a ditch and then go get another vehicle while you are still intoxicated with which to pull the first one out of the ditch. It is also important to remember that the Tennessee statute covers any motor-driven vehicle, including vehicles like forklifts which are rarely driven on public roads (for good reason).

Source: http://newsminer.com/pages/full_story/push?article-Yes-+you+can+get+a+DUI+on+a+forklift+in+Fairbanks%20&id=5253084-Yes-+you+can+get+a+DUI+on+a+forklift+in+Fairbanks&instance=home_news_window_left_top_3