Alaska state law stipulates that you are legally drunk if your blood-alcohol content is at .08 percent or greater for operators of personal vehicles and .04 percent or greater for operators of commercial vehicles. If you are pulled over and your BAC is found to be at or more than the BAC limit, you will be charged with driving under the influence. You can also be charged with a DUI if you are under the influence of any amount of an illegal drug.
In Alaska, a DUI is a Class A misdemeanor with a minimum three-day jail sentence, an automatic revocation of the driver’s license for 90 days and points applied against the driver’s record. The maximum penalties are one year in jail and a $5,000 fine. A judge may also order drivers who are convicted of a DUI into a mandatory drug and alcohol treatment program and to use an ignition interlock device for up to six months.
If the driver is under the age of 21 and under the influence of alcohol, they will face a slightly modified charge. A first offense carries a penalty of 20 to 40 hours of community service and a $500 fine. The amount of mandatory community service and fines increases with each subsequent offense.
Snowmobiles and other off-road gas-powered vehicles are considered motor vehicles by the state and subject to the same laws when they cross roads or use closed roads.
Implied Consent
Alaska has an implied consent law, which means that acceptance of a driver’s license implies that the driver gives consent to be tested for drugs or alcohol if a law enforcement officer has probable cause to believe that they are under the influence. If an accident causing serious injury or death has occurred, law enforcement officers have the right to administer a preliminary breath test at the scene.
Alaska’s version of the implied consent law allows law enforcement officers to administer a preliminary breath test prior to arresting or charging a driver with an offense. The right to conduct this preliminary breath test is based on probable cause such as erratic driving, breaking a traffic law or having an open container in the vehicle. Drivers have the legal right to refuse the preliminary breath test until they are arrested. Refusal of a breath test after being arrested is a crime with penalties equivalent to those of being convicted of a DUI.
Felony DUI
If you have two or more DUI or refusal convictions in the five years prior to your most recent charge, the DUI becomes a class C felony. A felony DUI in Alaska carries a mandatory minimum jail sentence of 120 days. That minimum is increased to 360 days in the case of fifth and subsequent offenses.
A felony DUI carries an additional mandatory minimum fine of $10,000 or $20,000 if the offense is committed in a highway work zone, and revocation of the driver’s license. Professional drivers will also permanently lose their commercial driving privileges if the felony incident occurred in a commercial vehicle.