The holidays are coming, and that means visiting friends and family, attending parties, and indulging in festive foods and drinks. There are parades, crowded stores filled with holiday shoppers, and indoor gatherings. However, with the pandemic this year, is any of that even possible? This year, there are more things to consider for these gatherings than just drunk drivers after a holiday party. Before you invite all of your friends and family over, it is important to know how to safely host a holiday gathering during Covid.
How-to: Safely Host a Holiday Gathering During Covid: Be Wise and Considerate
Reconsider
The only guaranteed way to safely host a holiday gathering during COVID is to reconsider having a get-together this year at all. COVID is certainly not a holiday gift that anyone wants to receive. The more people you are around, the higher your risk is for getting COVID. While it is not replacing gathering in-person, many medical professionals recommend finding virtual substitutes for family holiday traditions. While masks and social distancing can help, the only way to completely reduce the risk of infections is to remain separated.
Testing and Precautions
If you do choose to host a holiday gathering during COVID, there are some added precautions you can take. For example, your guests can agree to quarantine before the event. This will reduce the risk that they will contract the virus from someone else who has it, then bring it to you. You do run the risk that your attendees may break the quarantine or not be as diligent as you would like.
Another option would be for you to have your guests take a COVID test as close to the event as possible. Then, they should quarantine up until your event. This may be easier to ask for a family gathering than it would be for friends attending a party. Neither of these options is guaranteed to prevent COVID, but they can lower the risk.
Meals and Logistics
You may need to rethink the menu options you have at your holiday gathering during COVID. Instead of a buffet-style set up, a better option would be to serve individual plates of food. This keeps the number of people coming into contact with the food to a minimum. The person plating the food should be wearing a mask. When possible, use touchless garbage cans during cleanup.
Instead of opting for an indoor gathering, hold your event outdoors. However, this is not always possible depending on where you live. If your event has to be indoors, invite fewer guests. Also, have your guests wear masks when they are not eating.
While there is no perfect way to have a holiday gathering during COVID, these tips can help keep you and your guests safer. However, it’s good to remember that the best way to reduce your risk of COVID at a holiday gathering is to make it a virtual gathering instead.
Drunk drivers are a serious risk to others when they’re on the road. That’s why DUI detection is an important part of a police officer’s job. Knowing these methods could help you in identifying potential drunk drivers as well…
DUI Detection: How Police ID Drunk Drivers
Driving behavior
A person’s driving behavior plays a large role in DUI detection. Due to the effects of alcohol, drunk drivers will tend to drive much more poorly than their sober counterparts. These changes in driving behavior can then indicate to an officer that something might not be right with the driver themselves.
There are plenty of ways in which driving can indicate whether a person is impaired. However, some tells stand out more than others… For example, constant swerving in-between lanes is a common sign of a drunk driver, as is following other drivers too closely, or aggressive speeding.
Sobriety tests
Driving behavior is a good way to pick out potential drunk drivers. However, officers will need to perform a more in-depth look at the driver before making any decisions. That’s why they’ll use other methods of DUI detection as well, such as field sobriety tests.
Field sobriety tests tend to focus on some key areas that alcohol negatively effects. These include a person’s balance, tracking skills, memory, and decision making. These tests give the officer a better indication of whether or not the driver is impaired. After concluding these physical tests they will decide whether or not to move onto a breathalyzer test.
Breathalyzers
Breathalyzers are another form of DUI detection. Often times, offices will use these devices alongside a field sobriety test. That way, an officer will have some “hard” data to help them determine their course of action. The way that a driver performs on their field sobriety tests, combined with their BAC, and other factors will help officers make the call in terms of DUI detection and arrest.
Of course, you can use some of these detection methods as well. Of course, you won’t be pulling anyone over if you see them driving poorly. However, if they appear to be under the influence, you can make the call and let emergency services know what is going on. Knowing what officers look for can help you know what to look for as well.
As St. Patrick’s Day fast approaches in Charlotte, NC— most people are getting ready to hit the streets for Rich and Bennett’s annual bar crawl. This coming Saturday, March 16th is a day we write down in our calendars— prepping for weeks in advance to make sure that we spend the day with good company, drinks, and a solid schedule for bar hopping. While the objective of the day is to drink and be merry— there is some strategy that goes into doing it well…
St. Patrick’s Day Bar Crawl: Drink Smart
Start your day with a solid breakfast
Don’t forget to pick up your bar crawl shirts at any prepay event, or the morning of the crawl, to avoid pesky cover charges!
1: You know what they say about breakfast… it’s the most important meal of the day. The morning of your St. Patrick’s Day bar crawl is no different. In fact, it’s even more important than usual. You already know what your day looks like: boozy. So, set yourself up for success by putting a good layer of food on your stomach. We suggest something like avocado toast, potatoes, and bacon or sausage. You want something of substance; not too greasy, and filling enough to soak up that alcohol— but not drag you down. After all, longevity is the main objective.
2: Don’t take liquor lightly…
If you’re doing the Rich and Bennett’s St. Patrick’s Day bar crawl, you might be familiar with the annual specials: $4 16 oz. Bud Lights, $5 Tullamore Dew, and $5 New Amsterdam. You might have noticed that 2/3 of those drink specials are liquor. Therefore, it might be tempting to start your day with a few vodka or whiskey drinks. However, as we’ve mentioned, longevity is the goal. If you want to make it until that 10:00 p.m. mark, or even carry on until the bars close— save those liquor drinks until later in the day… Or maybe skip them altogether.
3: Stick with the group
While we have plenty of rules on how to drink smart and make your buzz last— realistically, we all know there comes a time when you’re going to feel those drinks. Therefore, it’s important that the people you start with, are the people you stick with throughout the entire St. Patrick’s Day bar crawl. At the very least, make sure you stay in groups of two or more. Being drunk, surrounded by green, and all by yourself? This is not only ill-advised, but it also has the potential to be very dangerous.
4: Lastly, get home safely
The most important thing you can do in terms of planning your St. Patrick’s Day bar crawl— is to make plans for your ride home. Find a hotel in the city, ride the Light Rail, take an Uber, Lyft, taxi, or set a designated driver. Whatever your plans are, make them in advance. Don’t find yourself stranded without a plan. Instead, take some time out from making those Jell-o shots, and have a serious conversation with your friends. Making plans for the end of the night ensures your safety, gives you peace of mind, and limits your chances of ending up with a DUI charge.
Have fun, be safe, eat, and enjoy your holiday weekend!
No matter your case, an attorney is an asset to your team. However, what happens when your attorney isn’t meeting your needs? If you feel ill-informed, out-of-the-loop, or as if you’re begging for their time and attention— then your attorney might not be right for you. But, how do you make the determination that you need new representation? And how do I pick an attorney who is going to give me the peace of mind and information that I’m looking for?
Need New Representation? When your Attorney isn’t a Good Fit…
Are your questions being answered?
The biggest question is this: are you getting the peace of mind you need to carry on through this process and feel confident? If your answer to this is ‘no’, then you might need a new representation. An attorney is there to answer your questions quickly, provide you with clarity, and help you to understand what it is that your end goal is— and how you’re going to get there. Every case is different and will move at a different pace. However, your attorney should have the ability to answer your questions quickly and easily.
Are you up-to-date and informed?
Have you gone weeks without an update on your case, or are you have to chase down your attorney to get some information? If so, new representation might be worth considering. Your case is important to you— no matter nature. Whether a divorce, personal injury case, motorcycle accident… Whatever it may be, you want to know what’s going on. So, if you find yourself answering “I don’t know”, to the question of how things are going, you might consider sitting down with another attorney for a consultation. After all, you are more than free to explore your options.
Are your needs being explored?
What you want exactly might be difficult to obtain, such as full compensation or a high spousal support settlement. However, it is your attorney’s job to explore your wants and needs. Keep in mind that you are hiring an attorney to do a job for you. You most certainly value their opinion, expertise, and predictions. But, your representation also has a responsibility to work for you, and what you want. However, keep in mind that what you want is not always what you will get…
Seeking out new representation can be scary. Especially if you are a little further into the case itself. But, don’t let the idea of a difficult transition keep you from getting what you deserve out of the court case…
While a new MADD SC DUI study supposedly shows conviction rates are too low, is this really news? Rather than look at each case individually, MADD seems to promote only those figures that helps its cause. However, what about the Constitutional rights of the accused? After all, in this age of video everywhere, is it too much to ask police to record a DUI arrest?
So a MADD SC DUI study shows laws are too tough?
Because the State makes the laws, they have all the power, money, and resources. While they try to make it seem fair, it really is not to any individual facing a criminal charge. However, as the burden of proof is always on the State, we should expect more, not less, video in cases. Furthermore, video is everywhere we go recording everything we do now. So when it really matters, we should demand video proof. After all, video protects everyone, not just the police from frivolous lawsuits. But most importantly, given the permanent consequences of a DUI conviction, it protects the individual charged with a serious crime. Rather than focus on conviction rates, let’s focus on whether the police make proper arrests.
So how can video transparency ever be bad?
Because video recording is so pervasive now, why is making sure the police record a DUI arrest even an issue? Rather, South Carolina is the only State that actually has mandatory video laws. Apparently, it is easier to make arrests in the shadows. While that may please groups like MADD, it takes away important protections for anyone stopped by police. Frankly, everyone should feel better with everyone’s conduct recorded. While we fully support and are grateful for the work police do, we believe full transparency is always better. And even if a few manage to “beat the system,” it is better than convicting someone wrongfully accused.
While some will disagree with us, we welcome respectful debate. Seems like these days people cannot disagree without getting ugly. So share your views with us, but please do so with a kind disposition. But most importantly, be safe on the road. Get home to what really matters.
While many criminal lawyers charge, we offer a free consultation. Why? Because we are interviewing for a job. Consequently, we meet with clients at no charge in DUI and DWI cases.
Free Consultation for DUI and DWI
Because DUI defense is serious business, we first have to convince you to hire our firm. So how do we do that? First of all, we go over our professional credentials and DUI experience. Before you can trust our advice, you must first have confidence in what we tell you. Hence we want you to know that we focus our criminal practice on DUI and DWI defense. In addition, we work hard to stay current on effective trial strategies. Of course, every case is different, and DUI defense is very complex. However, this is what we do, and we do it every day.
After we tell you about us, we turn our focus to you and what happened. Because every fact is important, we listen very carefully and make detailed notes. While we see certain patterns in every case, little things can sometimes make a big difference in outcome. As a result, we look for particular facts that favor your case. In addition, we also look for things that are bad and then find a good reason to explain. However, juries don’t seem to focus on every detail. Rather, they decide guilt based on common sense and experience. And we all know what “drunk” or “impaired” looks like and sounds like.
Video Evidence Explained
During our free consultation, we talk about lots of things. But the most important part of DUI is what video evidence is available. While South Carolina requires video evidence, North Carolina does not. However, in either State, juries look hard at how you appear and how you sound. As a result, we focus on every detail but really concentrate on things you do on video. For example, how do you walk normally? Furthermore, how do you sound and stand while on video? While the State prefers to talk about their roadside tests, we talk about your normal behavior. In the end, juries decide on what they see and hear for themselves.
Because we practice DUI defense most every day, it is second nature to our attorneys. However, it is a lot of information to hear, especially for the first time. Try not to worry. After all, that is why you would hire us. Regardless, you are going to know much more about how we do our job by the end of our meeting. Then you will be in a good place to decide who is the best DUI attorney for your case. Call us now and let’s start your defense.
Because the State makes the laws, they have all the power, money, and resources. While they try to make it seem fair, it really is not to any individual facing a criminal charge. However, as the