Can You Get A Dui For Having Your Keys In The Ignition?

In order to be convicted of a DUI, most states require that a person was caught a) under ther influence b) on a public way, and c) “operating” a motor vehicle.

“Under the influence” is proven either factually, or through a breathlyzer test. If your blood alcohol content is over .08, you’re driving above the legal limit.

“On a public way” is an element that comes into question less frequently because most DUIs happen on obvious public ways, i.e. streets and highways.

“Operating a vehicle” as the final element, is defined by and large as the doing of any act that makes use of any mechanical or electrical agency which alone or in sequence will set in motion the motive power of the vehicle.

In Connecticut and Massachusetts, that definition of “operation” is almost identical. Most states, including MA and CT, hold that “operating” a vehicle encompasses more than “driving” a vehicle.

For instance, turning a key to the first notch in the ignition to turn on the radio is considered operating a motor vehicle. So is turning the key fully to start the car. This is true in most states and certainyl in MA and CT.

But in order for the state to get you on “operating” a vehicle, they need to prove that you “intentionally committed an act” that was part of a “sequence of events” that would naturally set in motion the purpose of the vehicle (to drive.)

So technically, if a sober person turns on the car for you, and allows you to sleep in the car while you’re drunk… you haven’t operated a vehicle because you didn’t do any intentional act to facilitate the operation of the vehicle.

Or, you could have turned your car on, then started drinking in the car with a friend – say a parking lot before a baseball game. Cop comes up to you and arrests you for a DUI.

Technically, you started the car when you were sober. You got drunk in the car, and never committed an intentional act to set in sequence events that would naturally lead to the operation of the vehicle. So, in that case if you could prove those facts, you can’t be convicted of a DUI.

Bottom Line:

So the answer is… there are situations where having your keys in your ignition while drunk theoretically shouldn’t result in a DUI…

But make no mistake, being drunk behind the wheel, especially with the keys in the ignition, is one of the dumbest things you can do. DO NOT risk it. Just don’t.

Don’t bank on your explanation that you “started the car before you got drunk,” because ultimately, your fate will depend on what you can prove, not what actually happened. So really might not have started your car while you were drunk, but if a judge or a jury doesn’t buy your story, then you’re S.O.L.

So don’t risk it.