I’ve written about people getting arrested for a DUI in a golf cart, but it’s been a while since it’s actually happened. That is until this past weekend.
La Quinta, California, known for its golf courses, was the stage for the latest DUI in a golf cart incident.
According to La Quinta police Sgt. Chris Frederick , 41-year-old Stephen Southam made "an unsafe turning movement," which caused Southam’s 59-year-old passenger to be ejected from the golf cart.
Southam’s passenger was taken to JFK Memorial Hospital for treatment of his injuries not thought to be life-threatening.
Southam was arrested on suspicion of driving the golf cart while under the influence of alcohol and booked into the Indio jail with bail set at $50,000. He was released on Monday with a court date set for March 21st.
Southam’s predicament begs the question: Do California DUI law apply to golf carts?
Although California DUI law requires that a person drive a “vehicle,” California Vehicle Code Section 670 defines a “vehicle” as “a device by which any person or property may be propelled, moved, or drawn upon a highway, excepting a device moved exclusively by human power or used exclusively upon stationary rails or tracks.”
Since a golf cart is a device which a person can propel down a highway, yes, you can get also get a DUI here in California for driving a golf cart while under the influence or with a blood alcohol content of 0.08 percent.
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