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I just got my first DUI. What do I need to do to handle this? Will this have any impact on my driver's license going forward? I have had a clean driving record until this, and I need to drive for my job. Can I keep my license after a DUI?
28 ANSWERS
Transportation Attorney serving Mamaroneck, NY
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Palumbo & Associates, PC
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You are facing a license revocation.
Answered on Jun 21st, 2013 at 2:26 AM
Jacob P. Sartz
I would recommend privately consulting with an attorney if you need specific legal advice for your particular circumstances. Most attorneys provide free initial consultations. This answer does not contain specific legal advice. Anyone charged with an offense is presumed innocent until proven guilty. Any sort of alcohol related traffic offense may result in license sanctions if convicted. A conviction for this type of offense is especially problematic for professionals who need certain types of driving licenses, like Truck Drivers, for example. The Secretary of State administers any applicable license sanctions. In some instances, first-time OUI offenders are able to obtain a restricted license to go to work. Further, there is administrative appeals process to potentially challenge any sanctions administered by the Secretary of State in certain situations. Respectfully, Jacob Peter Sartz IV Attorney at Law 3737 Lake Eastbrook Blvd., Ste. 503 Grand Rapids, MI 49546 (517) 410-5127 (cell) (24 hrs) (888) 659-3646 (fax) For Ingham County Residents and Saturday Delivery: Jacob Peter Sartz IV Attorney at Law P.O. Box 1351 East Lansing, MI 48826-1351 Website: www.sartzcrimlaw.com Confidential The enclosed information in this e-mail is confidential and for the intended recipient only. Please delete if you are not the intended party.
Answered on Oct 28th, 2011 at 1:21 PM
Criminal Law Attorney serving San Jose, CA
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Maureen Furlong Baldwin
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In a first offense DUI, you can of course request a DMV hearing and if you win the hearing your license is not supended. That MUST be done within 10 days of arrest. If you cannot win a DMV hearing and do not get acquitted by a jury on your case, and your blood alcohol is .08 or above, then your license will be suspended for 4 months. If you go to DUI classes, then you can have your license suspended for only 30 days and restricted for work purposes only for 5 months.
Answered on Sep 26th, 2011 at 7:06 AM
Bankruptcy Attorney serving Federal Way, WA
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Freeborn Law Offices P.S.
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In all likelihood, you will loose your license for a minimum 90- days. It may be possible for you to get an occupational permit after 30 days. Depending upon the nature of your employment. After you get your license reinstated, The Court could also order the installation of an interlock device, which is a machine you have to blow into each time you start your car. If there is ANY alcohol in your system, the car won't start. There are also other issues you need to look at: mandatory jail time, fines, alcohol and drug evaluation and treatment. You need to consult with an attorney.
Answered on Sep 26th, 2011 at 5:23 AM
Criminal Trial Attorney serving San Jose, CA
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Law Office of Thomas F. Mueller
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On a first offense DUI you lose your license for 4 months. There is an option of 30 days if you are enrolled in a DUI Program and are willing to have a 5 month restricted license after the 30 days. Of course the Suspension is 1 year if you were under 21 when the arrest occurred. After these times there is no affect on your license unless you are arrested again for DUI.
Answered on Sep 24th, 2011 at 1:27 AM
If you have a blood alcohol content over .08, you will receive a notice of revocation in the mail as long as your address is up to date with the DMV. You must request a hearing within 7 days of receiving the notice-aks for the officer to be present. This proceeding is totally separate from the court proceeding to determine punishment. In the DMV hearing, if you are found guilty of driving with a BAC over .08, then your license must be revoked a minimum of 9 months. With a good lawyer, you can sometimes win these hearings. You can obtain a probationary license for your first offense after one mont with an interlock breathalyzer in your car.
Answered on Sep 23rd, 2011 at 11:28 PM
Criminal Defense Attorney serving Santa Rosa, CA
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Law Offices of Peter A. Duarte
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If convicted of a 1st offense dui , and lose the DMV hearing your license will be suspended for 4 months, however, you are entitled to a restricted license after 30 days of your suspension, provided that you enroll in the dui school, file an SR-22 and pay a re-issuance fee. I recommend you call a criminal defense attorney to discuss your case.
Answered on Sep 23rd, 2011 at 3:15 PM
After a DUI its the DMV that takes away your license. You may request that it be restricted and not suspended. The restriction would allow you to drive to and from work and to your classes assigned by the court.
Answered on Sep 23rd, 2011 at 1:57 PM
Steven D. Dunnings
Hire an attorney and your license will be suspended for a period of time. How long will depend on what you are finally convicted of (an attorney might be able to get the charge reduced to a lesser offense).
Answered on Sep 23rd, 2011 at 1:44 PM
In your ticket is notification that DMV will suspend you licensed for 90 days if you do not appeal that within 10 days of your ticket. If you have not appealed and it is in the 10 days do so now. If the 10 days is up, DMV will suspend your license and you will not have a legal right to drive for 90 days. After that time you will have to pay a reinstatement fee. If you drive without a license, DMV will suspend your license again. All this is done without any intervention or permission of the court. You must still deal with all legal charges in the court.
Answered on Sep 23rd, 2011 at 1:40 PM
It's possible, but you need to hire an attorney ASAP as your right to appeal the suspension of your driving privilege is extremely time sensitive. If you miss the limited time period to file your appeal your suspension will go into effect and there will be nothing anyone can do about it.
Answered on Sep 23rd, 2011 at 12:55 PM
Small Businesses Attorney serving Livonia, MI
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Klisz Law Office, PLLC
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It depends on your actual plea. Owi is worse than impaired in license sanctions.
Answered on Sep 23rd, 2011 at 12:40 PM
On a first OWI, there is a mandatory 30 day suspension of your licence. After the 30 days, you will be eligible for a restricted license for a period of time. In addition, there is mandatory driver responsibility fees that will have to be paid and your insurance company may take action regarding your car insurance. You have the right to be represented by an attorney and you may be well advised to exercise that right.
Answered on Sep 23rd, 2011 at 12:22 PM
Criminal Law Attorney serving Oakland, CA
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Dennis Roberts A Professional Corporation
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You will lose your license for 6 months on the first DUI but after 30 days you can get a restricted license - to and from work; to and from alcohol program.
Answered on Sep 23rd, 2011 at 12:00 PM
Michael J. Breczinski
After the first one generally you can keep your license after you serve the suspension but you can get a restricted license for work school and treatment. It will raise your insurance rates and cause you to pay a driver's responsibility fee for the next two years. You need an attorney.
Answered on Sep 23rd, 2011 at 11:48 AM
Speeding & Traffic Ticket Attorney serving Sherman Oaks, CA
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Law Offices of Phil Hache
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First, a DMV hearing needs to be requested within 10 days of your arrest, or else it is likely that your license will automatically be suspended by the DMV. Your attorney can handle this for you (as well as the DMV hearing, to try to protect your license. If there is a 1st DUI conviction, one of the penalties includes a 6 month license suspension, but you would likely be eligible for a work restricted license during that time. Also, additional consequences for a DUI can be severe, and include jail time. There is a lot more to this.
Answered on Sep 23rd, 2011 at 11:46 AM
You have only 10 days to request a hearing, or you will lose your license by default. The DMV proceeding is completely separate from the court case. A court conviction will also result in a 4-6 months license suspension (separate and on top of the DMV suspension). You should contact a DUI specialist to handle both your court and DMV cases. Letting a general lawyer handle your case is a big mistake, because DUI is a very complicated and specialized field within the law.
Answered on Sep 23rd, 2011 at 11:46 AM
A DUI will usually involve a DL suspension. You should be able to get an order for an ignition interlock so you may drive to work. After the suspension/interlock period your license rights can be restored.
Answered on Sep 23rd, 2011 at 11:45 AM
Criminal Defense Attorney serving Denver, CO
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The Law Offices of Jaime Cowan, P.C.
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You need to request a hearing at the DMV now. If you did not take a chemical test you may lose your license for 1 year. If you did do a chemical test, you maybe able to reinstate your license with interlock and SR 22 insurance. Court and DMV are two different issues.
Answered on Sep 23rd, 2011 at 11:11 AM
Drug Charges Attorney serving Houston, TX
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Cynthia Henley
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I assume that you got a DWI? Unfortunately, this site uses "DUI" and does not distinguish between DUI - a charge for a person under 21 years old driving under the influence of any alcohol at all - and DWI - a person of any age driving while intoxicated - having lost the normal use of their mental and / or physical faculties due to the introduction of alcohol, drugs, or a combination. You need to hire a lawyer. You, or your lawyer if you have not hired one in time, will need to request a hearing on the administrative license revocation that occurs automatically on the 40th day after your arrest if you do not request one (unless yours was a blood test case and not a breath test failure or refusal.) Regarding the DWI case itself, if you are acquitted, then there will be no repercussions on your DL (and any that you suffer as a result of the ALR hearing will be removed from your record, although you wil have to deal with them at the time.) If you get a probation and take the required course, your license will not be suspended. If you take a final conviction with no probation, your license will be suspended for a period of time - probably 6 months. Anyway, you need to talk to a lawyer about handling the case.
Answered on Sep 23rd, 2011 at 10:45 AM
Criminal Defense Attorney serving Orange, CA
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Law Office of Joe Dane
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Yes, it will impact your license. First, you only have 10 days from the date of your arrest to challenge the automatic suspension of your license by the DMV. If you're convicted of DUI or you lose your hearing with the DMV, your license will be suspended for 4-6 months. You can get a restricted license after 30 days if you sign up for an alcohol program, have current insurance filed with the DMV and pay the re-issuance fee. That 30 days is just that - 30 days of actual suspension. If you are caught driving during that 30 day period, it's another misdemeanor and could result in jail time. Your first step should be to sit down with a local criminal defense attorney that routinely practices in the court where your case will be heard. Don't miss that 10 day window to contact the DMV. Best of luck.
Answered on Sep 23rd, 2011 at 10:39 AM
Criminal Defense Attorney serving Montrose, NY
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Law Office of Jared Altman
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The answer to your question is very involved, too involved to answer fully. But, I'll give it a start for you: your license will probably be suspended at your first court appearance. You can sometimes get special permission (hardship privilege) to drive to and from work but not on the job. After about thirty days you may qualify for a more liberal conditional license that will let you drve at work. If you end up pleading to or getting convicted of any of the common DUI offenses then you will lose your license for at least six months. But again, after about twenty days you may qualify for another conditional license. If you are convicted or plead guilty to DWI, then you cannot operate any vehicle that is not equipped with an alcohol sensing ignition interlock device, on or off the job.
Answered on Sep 23rd, 2011 at 10:38 AM
Assault and Battery Attorney serving Encino, CA
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RP Defense Law
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Your driving privileges/ drivers license may be affected either by the Court, if you get convicted of DUI, or by the DMV. First, you (or your attorney if you hire one) have to contact the DMV within 10 days of your arrest to request a hearing. If you miss it, you waive your right to a hearing and your driving privileges (your drivers license) automatically get suspended after 30 days of your arrest. If you go to the DMV hearing and the DMV decides in your favor, the DMV will not suspend your driving privileges (although it is important to know that your driving privileges will be suspended if you get a DUI conviction in Court). If the DMV decides against you, your driving privileges / drivers license will be suspended (usually from 4 to 6 months). If your drivers license is suspended, you may apply for and get a restricted license which will allow you to drive to work, to school, to court or to DMV imposed alcohol programs, etc. The DMV hearing is separate and different from the Court hearing. I recommend that you hire a competent DUI attorney to fight against a suspension of your drivers license and to help you to keep your record clean from a DUI conviction.
Answered on Sep 23rd, 2011 at 10:30 AM
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A DUI can suspend your license and put you in jail for up to a year. You can be required to drive with an interlock as well.
Answered on Sep 23rd, 2011 at 10:22 AM
Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Attorney serving Appleton, WI
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Sisson & Kachinsky Law Offices
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First you need to hire a good attorney, who does this type of work and that you feel comfortable with. The OWI will most definitely impact your license to drive, your insurance and likely your job.
Answered on Sep 23rd, 2011 at 10:12 AM
When a person is charged with a DUI, two things will begin, a criminal charge, at least one charge, and an administrative process with your driver's license. The driver's license administrative action begins very quickly. If you are charged with DUI your license will almost certainly be revoked. You will still have the criminal charge pending, a conviction that will stay with you and your driving record. What you need to do is quickly hire an attorney that will tackle BOTH the driver's license hearing and the criminal charge and fight for you. If you just received a DUI, NOW is the time to hire an aggressive attorney.
Answered on Sep 23rd, 2011 at 10:10 AM
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You have 15 days from the date of your arrest to try and save your license.
Answered on Sep 23rd, 2011 at 10:07 AM
Automobile Attorney serving East Lansing, MI
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Nichols Law Firm PLLC
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A DUI will result in license sanctions. Depending on your bodily alcohol content you could face a suspension of 1 year. Contact a qualified DUI lawyer immediately.
Answered on Sep 23rd, 2011 at 9:49 AM