Although the legal age to drink in every state is 21, underage adults and teens still do drink alcohol. When they also make the decision to drive, they can be charged with a DUI with a blood alcohol level of 0.05%. The legal limit for legal adults is 0.08%. Unfortunately, a teen who is caught driving while intoxicated will often face the same penalties as an adult of the legal age to drink. The same is true if the underage driver is involved in an accident. If there are injuries or a fatality involved, they could face charges of vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated or DUI causing serious injury.
Fox 5 San Diego reports that two people have died in a fiery wreck caused by a suspected underage DUI driver.
On Saturday, a teen driver who was driving without a license and suspected of driving while intoxicated was arrested. The arrest came after the unnamed teen crashed the vehicle he was driving on a freeway in Mission Valley.
The teen was driving a 2008 BMW westbound on Interstate 8 at about 3:15 a.m. The teen was attempting to take the Route 163 transition ramp at a high speed. The vehicle swerved over the concrete wall of the ramp and plunged about 40 feet down an embankment. It then crashed into a tree and caught fire.
There were five teenagers between the ages of 15 and 19 in the BMW at the time of the crash. The driver and the two other teens were able to get out of the vehicle. Two teens in the back seat were unable to escape. Firefighters discovered them after they put out the blaze.
The three other teens all suffered from major injuries. Police say that the 17-year-old driver did not have a license and arrested the teen on charges of suspicion of DUI and vehicular homicide.
