How can I be charged with a DUI if I was driving on private property and not on a highway?

Everyone knows that DUI laws apply to driving on “highways,” meaning official roads in Pennsylvania.  Many people do not realize that DUI laws can also apply to people when they drive on “trafficways,” which are bascially roads that are on private property but are generally open or used by the public.  For example, the Walmart parking lot is a trafficway.  A parking garage is a trafficway.  A road through a community is probably a trafficway, but, if the community is gated and thereby public access is limited, then the road is probably not a trafficway.  If the road is not a highway or trafficway, then the person should not be charged with a DUI.  There are often fights over whether or not a particular road is a trafficway.  If the judge determines that the road is not a trafficway, then the DUI charge must be dismissed.What is a trafficway and what is not a trafficway must sometimes be determined on a case-by-case basis, and, in such instances, it is critically important to be represented by an experienced criminal defense lawyer.

Many people also are stopped by the police in the driveway of their home and think that they cannot be charged with DUI.  The fact that the driver made it home does not create a safe zone that prohibits criminal prosecution.  The officer is going to charge the person for driving under the influence for the recent driving on a road.  The person is not being charged for parking.

Contact the experienced State College DUI attorneys at JD Law for a free case evaluation by email or call (814) 689-9139.