Drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05%

Legislation: Road Safety Act 1986 (Vic) s 49(1)(b)

Maximum penalty: Varies - up to 18 months imprisonment or 180 penalty units (subsequent offence where alcohol concentration more than 0.15gm)

Period: 1 July 2020 to 30 June 2023

Jurisdiction: Magistrates' Court

Charges

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Cases

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All outcomes

Males

Females

Aged 18 to 24

Aged 25 to 54

Aged 55 and over

*Note: unavailable options have under 10 cases

Charge data

In the Magistrates' Court, 171 charges of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05% were sentenced in the three years to 30 June 2023. The most common sentence for a charge of this offence was a fine (79.5% or 136 charges).

On SACStat, a charge is a single count of a sentenced offence. Charge data is most useful in understanding how a specific crime is usually sentenced.

Case data

In 171 cases sentenced in the Magistrates' Court in the three years to 30 June 2023, each case included at least one charge of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05%. Among the 171 cases, 132 people were male and 39 people were female. The most common outcome for cases was a fine (78.4% or 134 cases).

A case is a collection of one or more charges against a person or company sentenced at the one hearing. Case data is most useful in understanding the total sentence usually imposed on people found guilty of a particular crime.

Bar graph showing sentence types imposed for charges of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05% — **Figure 1**: Sentencing outcomes for all charges of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05%
**Number: 171 charges**

Bar graph showing lengths of community correction orders for charges of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05% — **Figure 3**: Community correction order lengths for charges of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05%
**Number: 7 charges**

Bar graph showing fine amounts for charges of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05% — **Figure 4**: Fine amounts for charges of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05%
**Number: 56 charges**
**Note**: The graph only includes fines that were not part of an aggregate sentence (non-aggregate fines).

Stacked bar graph showing sentences imposed each year for charges of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05% — **Figure 5**: Sentencing outcomes for all charges of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05% by financial year
**Number: 171 charges**

Bar graph showing the number of charges each year for the offence of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05% — **Figure 6**: Number of charges of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05% by financial year
**Number: 171 charges**

Bar graph showing fines amounts each year for charges of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05% — **Figure 8**: Average fine amounts for charges of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05% by financial year
**Number: 56 charges**
**Note**: The graph only includes fines that were not part of an aggregate sentence (non-aggregate fines).

Bar graph showing sentence types for all offenders for cases of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05% — **Figure 9A**: Sentencing outcomes for all people for cases of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05%
**Number: 171 cases**

Bar graph showing sentence types for male offenders for cases of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05% — **Figure 9B**: Sentencing outcomes for males for cases of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05%
**Number: 132 cases**

Bar graph showing sentence types for female offenders for cases of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05% — **Figure 9C**: Sentencing outcomes for females for cases of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05%
**Number: 39 cases**

Bar graph showing sentence types for offenders aged under 25 for cases of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05% — **Figure 9D**: Sentencing outcomes for people aged under 25 for cases of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05%
**Number: 17 cases**

Bar graph showing sentence types for offenders aged 25 to 54 for cases of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05% — **Figure 9E**: Sentencing outcomes for people aged 25 to 54 for cases of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05%
**Number: 129 cases**

Bar graph showing sentence types for offenders aged 55 and over for cases of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05% — **Figure 9F**: Sentencing outcomes for people aged 55 and over for cases of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05%
**Number: 25 cases**

Bar graph showing imprisonment lengths for cases of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05% — **Figure 10**: Imprisonment lengths for cases of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05%
**Number: 3 cases**, including imprisonment only (2 cases) and imprisonment combined with a community correction order (1 case).

Bar graph showing non-parole periods for cases of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05% — **Figure 11**: Non-parole periods for all people for cases of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05%
**Number: 2 cases**
**Note**: Imprisonment terms do not include a community correction order.

Bar graph showing lengths of community correction orders for cases of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05% — **Figure 12**: Community correction order lengths for cases of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05%
**Number: 10 cases**

Stacked bar graph showing sentences imposed each year for cases of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05% — **Figure 13**: Sentencing outcomes for all cases of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05% by financial year
**Number: 171 cases**

Bar graph showing the number of cases each year for cases of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05% — **Figure 14**: Number of cases of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05% for all people by financial year
**Number: 171 cases**

Bar graph showing the average imprisonment length each year for cases of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05% — **Figure 15**: Average imprisonment lengths for cases of drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle while exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol of 0.05% by financial year
**Number: 3 cases**