Due to new state laws, Georgia drivers can now be charged with a DUI even if they have a blood alcohol content level under 0.08.

The new law “DUI: Less Safe” says that drivers under the legal limit of alcohol consumption can still receive a DUI.

The officer simply has to prove that the driver is a danger to others based on appearance, demeanor, and driving at the time of arrest.

This differs from the well-known “per se” DUI law, which states that one would have to have a blood alcohol content level over 0.08.

Valdosta Police Officer, Patrolman Travis Phinney, confirmed that the general minimum amount of alcohol that causes a person to be charged with a less safe DUI is 0.05.

This number does not serve as a legal minimum however.

Drivers who refuse a breathalyzer test are automatically sent to jail.

Refusing to take the test at the precinct could result in the loss of a drivers’ license.

Three DUIs results in a felony and the driver is ordered to see a judge to determine any further consequences.

Drivers can also be charged with either type DUI while under the influence of prescription or nonprescription drugs.

Corporal Heidi Bertsch of the VSUPD says she agrees with the new “Less Safe” law and thinks that it will stay around for a long time.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, an estimated 10,839 people died in alcohol-impaired driving crashes in the US in 2009.

Both Phinney and Bertsch agree that though DUI laws cannot decrease the number of drunk drivers, they can decrease the potential of accidents or other harmful actions.

Junior marketing major, Kimberly Wright, also agrees with the “DUI: Less Safe” law.

“People feel as if they drive better when they’re drunk, but they’re not in their right set of mind,” Wright said.