Driving drunk can not only expose you to criminal charges but civil suits as well. Most people are aware that a person injured in an alcohol-related accident can sue the drunk driver in a civil action.

But did you know that victims of drunk driving accidents in Arizona can also sue the bar or restaurant that served the alcohol to the driver?

Another beauty pageant winner has been charged with DUI. Last weekend, the 2010 Miss Arizona Teen USA was arrested in Los Angeles on suspicion of DUI, TMZ reports.

According to authorities, 18-year-old Tori Vance was pulled over after she made an illegal U-turn in her Mini Cooper in Hollywood. The Ahwatukee-native has reportedly been living in L.A. pursuing a modeling career.

According to the Tempe Police Department, the city saw a sharp decline in fatal accidents involving impaired drivers in 2011, The Arizona Republic reports.

From 2010 to 2011, fatal accidents involving impaired drivers dropped 80 percent, according to police statistics. Fatal accidents in general fell by 44 percent. According to Tempe police, the decline was due to the department’s new emphasis on traffic enforcement.

With summer on the way, many people will be drinking at barbecues or by the pool. When moving from spot to spot, however, it's important to remember to leave that half-empty beer behind.

Under Arizona's open container law, it's a class 2 misdemeanor for anyone to drive with an opened or unsealed container of alcohol in the passenger compartment. That goes for drivers and passengers alike. Below, we've included some things to keep in mind if you do find yourself being cited for an open container violation.

Phoenix police have arrested an unlicensed teen driver in a DUI accident that left a 5-year-old boy dead, The Arizona Republic reports.

Pedro Ramirez has been charged with manslaughter, aggravated assault, and extreme DUI for the crash that killed Angel Alvarez. The boy's mother, 21-year-old Evangelina Barrios, has also been arrested for failing to secure the boy in a child safety seat.

Imagine a mouth spray that gets you instantly drunk, then quickly disappears from your system, leaving you hangover free. Though it sounds like something out of the Jetsons, French scientists claim that they’ve invented it, USA Today reports.

The spray was released in Paris this week, and will be sold throughout Europe. Scientists have warned, however, that it’s physiologically impossible for the spray to make you drunk, yet be undetectable “by any alcohol test” as it was rumored to do. But what if the spray does work to even a small degree? How would police prove DUI in cases where the alcohol is untraceable? Would the spray bottle count as an open container?

Police have stated that a 22-year-old man was driving drunk when his SUV rolled over near Colorado City, killing the man and four teenagers, The Arizona Republic reports.

According to the Mohave County Sheriff’s Office, an autopsy showed that Carl Otto Nathaniel Holm had a blood alcohol concentration of 0.186 percent at the time of the accident, over twice the legal limit.

With Cinco de Mayo just around the corner, many people are itching to celebrate Mexico’s victory at the Battle of Puebla with tequila shots and margaritas. However, the holiday is notorious for the spike in alcohol-related offenses that typically accompanies the festivities.

Here’s a quick run-through of some of Arizona’s most important alcohol-related laws to help you avoid an evening in the drunk tank and possible criminal charges on May 5.

As Arizona has the toughest DUI laws in the country, even a misdemeanor DUI conviction can carry serious consequences. A charge of aggravated DUI, however, is a felony crime and carries even harsher penalties, like multiple years of imprisonment.

While most people are aware that aggravated DUI charges exist, many are unsure of the exact circumstances in which the charges apply. Aggravated DUI charges arise where certain aggravating factors exist that elevate a DUI offense to the level of a felony. Below, we’ve included five circumstances in which a driver could be charged with an aggravated DUI in Arizona.

State liquor officers arrested 189 people for underage drinking-related offenses at this month’s Country Thunder music festival in Florence, The Associated Press reports. Most of those arrested were charged with underage possession of alcohol, using a fake ID to buy alcohol, or furnishing alcohol to a minor. Police also made 24 DUI arrests, 8 of which were for extreme DUI.

According to the Arizona Department of Liquor Licenses and Control, the four-day festival has been plagued with underage drinking in the past. This year, the liquor control agency deployed officers to work with state police in combating underage drinking at the event.