To be arrested for Driving While Intoxicated in Rochester, the law requires that the defendant be “operating” a motor vehicle.
In most cases, operation will not be an issue because the driver will have been stopped while driving a moving vehicle.
In cases where the driver is found asleep in a stopped vehicle or the car was never moved, it has been left up to the courts of New York State to determine whether this behavior constitutes “operation” under the meaning of the law.
Because there is no clear definition of what it means to “operate” a vehicle under New York State law, the courts have generally looked at the totality of the circumstances when deciding whether the driver actually operated the vehicle.
Generally, there must be an intent to put the vehicle in motion, although the courts have found that the driver does not need to actually move the vehicle.
As a result, there have been cases where someone was found sleeping in a car with the motor started in order to run the heater and the DWI charges were dismissed.
In other cases, defendants have been found attempting to start a car that was incapable of running and the charges were upheld because the defendant intended to put the vehicle in motion, even though it was impossible to do.
The courts may also look at how a vehicle came to be at the location where the arrest occurred.
Thus, an intoxicated driver found passed out behind the wheel of a stopped vehicle on the shoulder of the road may be convicted of DWI based on the circumstantial evidence that he or she drove to the location where the vehicle was found parked and shut off.
If you have been arrested for DWI and have any questions regarding what must be proven in your case, call us at 585-484-7432 for a legal consultation.