Drugs

10 or more at any relevant time after the driving (Loeb 53). The alcohol mostly used in determining alcohol concentration is ethyl alcohol that is found in beer, wine, or liquor. North Carolina's statute made the amount of alcohol in a person's breath an element of the offense, and it did not require a conversion to blood alcohol content (Loeb 55). A conviction of impaired driving was and still is second to death penalty cases in the amount of documentation. There were five possible levels of punishment for a convicted violator of an impaired driving law. To determine the proper level, the sentencing judge had to first determine if certain grossly aggravating factors were present. If more than one grossly aggravating factor was present, a sentence at level one was required. If one was present, a sentence at level two was required. If none were present, then the judge had to determine if any aggravating or mitigating factors were present. He or she then had balance those factors to determine if level three, four, or five was appropriate. In 1966 a convicted violator of an impaired driving law would receive one-year license revocation, showing the changes made in thirty-six years.
             Level one punishment was the most severe and was required only when at least two grossly aggravating factors were present. The person would receive two years" imprisonment, a $2,000 fine, or both. Level two punishment was required when only one grossly aggravating factor was present. The maximum punishment was one years" imprisonment, a $1,000 fine, or both. Level three punishment was required when no grossly aggravating factors were present and the regular aggravating factors present out weighed any mitigating factors. The maximum punishment was six months" imprisonment, a $500 fine, or both. The sentence of imprisonment had to be suspended and a judge had to impose at least one of the following probation conditions: at least seventy-two hours in jail, at least seventy-two hours of community service, at least ninety days of not driving, or any combination of the above three (Loeb 72).