North Carolina DUI and DWI Legal Questions

If you have been permanently revoked or otherwise cannot legally drive due to DWI suspension, there may be options available for restoration that involve a formal hearing with the NCDMV – North Carolina Department of Transporation / Division of Motor Vehicles. Assuming DMV authorizes a hearing to determine whether administrative relief is appropriate, there are several important steps to take prior to the actual hearing itself. The application process is somewhat involved, possibly requiring things like: Certification of a prior record in any state where the petitioner has had a driver license Fingerprinting Payment of fees Formal criminal history/record Documentation of Substance Abuse Assessment Proof of compliance with any recommended treatment Proof of installation of Secure Continuous Remote Alcohol Monitoring “SCRAM” or “CAM” ankle bracelet There are also fees associated with an NC Driver’s License Hearing Request.... Read More

You will need to come back to NC for your courtdate.  In order to get the case back on the calendar, you will also need to come back and get served with the order for arest which should have been issued when you missed your courtdate, unless you retain a good traffic/DWI  lawyer, who should be able to get your case back on the calendar without you having to be re-arrested.  They should also negotiate with the District Attorney on your behald to make the rest of the process go smoother for you.  If your case is for trial, a good experienced traffic/DWI attorney can prepare a your case for trial in order to mount a strong defense for you. ... Read More

Please look at the language included in your limited driving privilege very carefully. There is a section that can limit which vehicles you can operate, and there are sections that limit which places  and what hours you can drive.  If you are ever caught driving outside of those limitations it is the same as driving with a revoked license and you can be charged.  The limited driving privilege is supposed to show your home address and your job's address.  I am pretty sure that driving outside of the state of NC while posessing only a Limited Driving Privilege from North carolina is a violation of the limited driving privilege.  I am saying this because I presume that both your home and your job are in the same state, and any police officer who stopped you in another state would likely not believe that you were travelling from your house to your job if you were in a totally different state.  I reinterate, please read your Limited Driving Privilege carefully.  A lot of these answers depend on the specific wording of your limited driving privilege.... Read More

The maximum for a DWI, as long as the person is not charged with Habitual DWI, is three years. It sounds like it is beyond the point of wondering if you charged since apparently you already are charged. The issue is whether you will be convicted. It may depend upon whether you left the keys in a location where he could get them and use the car. I would consult with an attorney in your county and he should do the same.... Read More

If you were placed on supervised probation and failed to report for a period of time in jail it would already be a probation violation. If you were doing jail instead of community service your failure to report could also cause problems which could result in a violation. There are really too many variables to accurately answer your question. One would need to know what level you were for sentencing and what the judgment was. Either way, it is not good.... Read More

If you are clubbing with your 13 year old son and he is driving, you probably will be charged with allowing a non-licensed driver to drive and misdemeanor contributing to the delinquency of a minor child. Both charges carry up to 120 days in jail depending on your criminal history. If you are driving intoxicated and have your 13 year old son with you, you will automatically be raised to a  level 2 DWI, which carries a mandatory 7 day minimum jail sentence and can be placed in jail for up to 2 years just for the DWI. You also will probably be charged with contributing to the delinquency of a minor so you can get additional time for that. I would not recommend using your 13 year old as your designated driver even if he can drive but I would definitely avoid at all cost driving under the influence with someone under the age of 16.... Read More

The shorter answer is no.  Courts in North Carolina have found that where a name is misspelled or in the incorrect order on a citation the legal doctrine of idem sonans applies.  This is a legal doctrine whereby a person's identity is presumed known despite the misspelling of his or her's name.... Read More

Yes, it is possible, but you may face a one-year revocation of your license or longer depending on the outcome of the DWI.  Without knowing more about driving history, its difficult for me to advise you further.  If you never showed up to court for the DWI, there may be an outstanding order for your arrest.  You should contact an attorney in the county in which you were charged in order to begin straightening this out.... Read More

DWI/DUI law in North Carolina is extremely complicated.  Trying to defend yourself is an incredibly bad idea with this type of charge.  You risk a one-year suspension of your license, fines, and probation.  If you can't afford an attorney, you should seek an appointed public defender.... Read More

The following response is for general information purposes only and is not to be construed as legal advice. There is not a method of expungement/expunction to remove a careless and reckless charge from your record to which you pleaded guilty.  However, an attorney may be able to be reopen the case and request that a Motion for Appropriate Relief be granted.  This is a method by which an attorney may reopen a case and request that the judgement be changed.  The attorney may request that judgement be continued (PJC), that the charge be reduced to a lesser charge, or that the matter be dismissed.  Just because a Motion for Appropriate Relief is made does not mean that it will be granted; however, it would be the most readily available option to you to get this charge off your record or reduced to something that will not be as damaging to your chances of obtaining employment.  It would be advisable to meet with an attorney and discuss a potential Motion for Appropriate Relief and the chances of the Motion being granted in the county in which the conviction was obtained.  Inform the attorney of the reasons why it is important for this conviction to come off your record because the attorney may include these details as the basis for the Motion for Appropriate Relief.... Read More

The following response is intended for general information purposes only and is not to be construed as legal advice. Unfortunately, the Driving While Impaired conviction you received in 1981 will likely show up on a background check.  Though there there has been a significant period of time since the conviction, it will still be visible to the potential employer.  It is likely that the employer would check either a background check or a driving record check.  Both of these would likely reveal the conviction.  In my experience, driving records do reveal Driving While Impaired convictions that occurred in the 1980s. With regards to disclosing the conviction on the application, this may or may not have criminal repercussions for you.  Since you are applying for a position with the federal government, please check the application thoroughly to make sure that you are not answering the questions under the penalty of perjury for nondisclosure or for answering with falsity.  In my experience, especially when applying for employment with the government, it is not in your best interests not to disclose a previous conviction.   ... Read More

The following response is for general information purposes only.  It is not to be construed as legal advice. The following response will pertain to obtaining a limited driving privilege during a thirty (30) day suspension of your license after being charged with certain implied consent offenses (i.e. Driving While Impaired with a BAC reading of 0.08 or higher) pursuant to N.C. Gen. Stat. 20-16.5. If you are suspended for another offense, please resubmit the question with more explanation.  The process will be similar for other suspensions, but it would be best to consult an attorney in your county to discuss the purpose of the suspension and the best options for obtaining a privilege or lifting the suspension if possible. To obtain a limited driving privilege after being charged with an implied consent offense, a petition must be filed with the Clerk of Court in the county in which the offense was charged.  The form for the petition may be found at this link.  The petition may be filed on the tenth day from the date of the offense.  The form may be filed by the petitioner or by an attorney representing the petitioner.  On the eleventh day from the date of the offense, the petitioner or an attorney representing him/her must appear in court where the Clerk of Court has set the matter before a judge with the following documents: (1)  the actual limited driving privilege, (2) a DL-123 form from the petitioner's insurance company or a DL-123A form if the petitioner drives only fleet vehicles and does not own a vehicle, (3) a letter from the petitioner's employer if any hours are necessary outside of the standard Monday through Friday 6:00 AM to 8:00 PM, (4) a copy of the petitioner's driving record (may be obtained from NC Department of Motor Vehicles), and (5) a copy of the petitioner's Substance Abuse Assessment and proof of enrollment in the recommended treatment.  The privilege will cost one hundred dollars ($100.00). Different counties and judges vary as to the details of what is required for the privilege (i.e. certified driving record v. non-certified driving record).  It would be beneficial to contact a local attorney to discuss whether or not you qualify for a limited driving privilege, as not every person charged with an implied consent offense qualifies (i.e. willful refusal). ... Read More

The following answer is for general information purposes only.  It is not meant to be construed as legal advice. The following statute should provide valuable information to aid you in answering your questions related to this issue of probation: http://www.ncleg.net/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/PDF/ByArticle/Chapter_15A/Article_82.pdf. When you were put on probation, you were made aware that one of the conditions of probation is that you not commit any criminal offense.  It is in the discretion of your probation officer whether or not he/she files a violation report; however, since you have been charged with Driving While Impaired, your probation officer may file a violation report and your probation be tolled (put in HOLD status) pending the outcome of the Driving While Impaired charge.  N.C. Gen. Stat. 15A-1344 provides details as to the options a judge has to respond to a violation of probation, including: reduction, termination, continuance, extension, modification, or revocation.  In Wake County, the typical procedure is that the probationer is given a chance to defend against the violation report or to admit the violation and then move into sentencing.  During the sentencing phase, the probation officer makes a recommendation to the District Attorney as to what the State wants (i.e. 2 jail weekends and an extension of probation for 1 year), and the District Attorney then makes his request to the judge for a specific punishment for the violation.  The probationer or his/her counsel then has a chance to argue for a lesser or different outcome or agrees with the recommendation.  With regards to the probation fees, it could be favorable for you to pay the remaining probation fees as it would be detrimental to get behind on your payments; however, please be aware that your probation officer may still file the violation report regardless of your payment.  You have the right to counsel for both the Driving While Impaired charge and the Probation Violation.  It would be preferable to consult with a local attorney in the county where you are on probation and the county in which the Driving While Impaired charge occurred to receive advice on likely outcomes or possible resolutions for this particular issue.  The attorney would also be able to advise you whether active time is likely for a conviction of Driving While Impaired depending on the grossly aggravating, aggravating, and mitigating factors present in your case.... Read More

Because of the complexity of the laws related to the offense of Driving While Impaired, it is always best to hire an attorney to represent you or to ask that the State appoint an attorney to represent you if you cannot afford to hire your own.  An attorney would be able to hear the facts as you tell them, gather the reports and other pertinent discovery materials, discuss the matter with the officer, and then advise you based on all of that information and the law what course of action would be in your best interests.  Generally, there are three primary ways to challenge a charge of Driving While Impaired that seem relevant to the facts as you have described them. First, the State must prove that the Officer had a reasonable suspicion that criminal activity was occurring, was about to occur, or had occurred to request that you stop your motorcycle.  Speeding would likely amount to reasonable suspicion as it is in violation of N.C. Gen. Stat. § 20-141. However, an attorney may find a way to challenge the officer's reasonable suspicion to stop you for a violation of the speeding law if radar was not used and the officer was purely approximating your speed from the rear.  These are factors that an attorney would evaluate among others to determine if the State has met its burden at this stage. Secondly, the State must prove that the Officer had probable cause to believe you were driving while impaired prior to his arrest of you for that offense.  This stage takes into account your driving, your appearance (i.e. red, glassy eyes), your behavior (i.e. slurred speech, repetition, confusion), your performance on field sobriety tests, and much more up to the point of arrest.  At this stage, your medical conditions would become pertinent to potentially explain your performance on the sobriety tests and your behavior and mannerisms that evening if the officer was aware of your medical conditions.  Again, an attorney would evaluate these factors to determine if the State has met its burden at this stage. Lastly, the State must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that you were driving while impaired.  This stage takes into account everything from beginning to end (i.e. driving, behavior, appearance, performance on tests, and your refusal).  Your medical records would also be pertinent at this stage, because your refusal (to provide a sample of your breath if charged with an implied consent offense like Driving While Impaired) may be used as evidence against you.  An attorney would evaluate the ways to combat the weight of this evidence from the State or to suppress it altogether.  None of the above is to be interpreted as legal advice and it is provided simply for general information purposes only.  Please see the first paragraph regarding the importance of hiring or requesting counsel to assist you with this offense.... Read More

My response to this is to get an attorney. Your attorney will let you know what steps to do immediately (like getting an alcohol assessment, etc.) to put yourself in the best position possible. Your attorney will let you know what your options are as far as being able to drive while the case is pending. If I can help in any way, please let me know. My information is below.... Read More