Section 24:
Driving while under influence of intoxicating liquor, etc.; second and subsequent offenses; punishment; treatment programs; reckless and unauthorized driving; failure to stop after collision
Section 24. (1) (a) (1)
Whoever, upon any way or in any place to which the public has a right of access, or upon any way or in any place to which members of the public have access as invitees or licensees, operates a motor vehicle with a percentage, by weight, of alcohol in their blood of eight one-hundredths or greater, or while under the influence of intoxicating liquor, or of marijuana, narcotic drugs, depressants or stimulant substances, all as defined in section one of chapter ninety-four C, or the vapors of glue shall be punished by a fine of not less than five hundred nor more than five thousand dollars or by imprisonment for not more than two and one-half years, or both such fine and imprisonment.
Massachusetts DUI Laws – statute(s)
- G.L.A. 90 § 24.
Massachusetts DUI Laws – standard
- It is illegal to operate a motor vehicle “while under the influence of intoxicating liquor, or of marijuana, narcotic drugs, depressants or stimulant substances, all as defined in [M.G.L.A. 94C § 1] . . . .” M.G.L.A. 90 § 24(1)(a)(1).
Massachusetts DUI Laws – applicable substances
- Marijuana, narcotic drugs, depressants or stimulant substances. “Depressant or stimulant substances” are defined as: (1) a drug which contains any quantity of barbituric acid; (2) a drug that contains any quantity of amphetamine; (3) LSD; or (4) a drug except marijuana that “the United States Attorney General has by regulation designated as having a potential for abuse because of its depressant or stimulant effect on the central nervous system or its hallucinogenic effect.” M.G.L.A. 94C § 1. DUI – affirmative defense None. Per se – statute(s) None.
Massachusetts DUI Laws Per se – standard
- N/A
Massachusetts DUI Laws Per se – applicable substances
- N/A
Massachusetts DUI Laws Per se – affirmative defense(s)
- N/A
Massachusetts DUI Laws Implied consent – applicable drivers
- Person operating a motor vehicle “upon any way or in any place to which the public has right to access” in Massachusetts. M.G.L.A. 90 § 24(1)(f).
Massachusetts DUI Laws Implied consent – tests authorized
- Massachusetts’ implied consent law (M.G.L.A. 90 § 24(1)(f)) appears to apply only to the testing for the presence of alcohol, and not for the presence of any other drug.
