Drunk Driving Laws
! WARNING !
IT IS POSSIBLE THAT YOUR DRIVERS LICENSE IS BEING TAKEN AWAY FROM YOU RIGHT NOW
You must
contact a skilled driving under the influence defense attorney as soon after an arrest as possible. Do not delay: your freedom could
be at stake.
Drunk Driving Laws
When you are arrested for
driving under the influence, many states actually begin the process of
prosecuting you in two separate cases:
The D.M.V. case (some states refer to this as the M.V.D. hearing), where your
drivers license may be suspended; and
the criminal case that may result in jail, community service, fines, an ignition interlock
device being installed in the car, impounding the defendants vehicle,
alcohol education classes or a combination of these things, depending upon
the facts of the case.
DMV Case
If you have been arrested for drunk driving, some states
require a DMV hearing request within a certain number of days after the
arrest. If you fail to request this
hearing, it is possible that your license will be automatically suspended or
revoked.
This is a huge inconvenience to
you, and it may cost you a job or worse.
In order to request a
hearing, please contact a skilled
DUI / DWI defense
attorney immediately. If he or she is truly knowledgeable about
driving while intoxicated cases, the lawyer will be able to give you specific
instructions about how to request the hearing (in some cases, the attorney may
request the hearing for you) and attempt to avoid drivers license
suspension.
Please keep in mind that
no matter how much time has passed after your arrest, it may be possible to
successfully request a DMV hearing,
depending upon the facts of your case. It is best to
get in touch with a drunk
driving lawyer right away in order to explore your options.
The Criminal Case
In order to convict a
person of D.U.I., the prosecutor must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the
accused drove a vehicle while under the
influence of alcohol, drugs or both; or, that the defendant drove
a vehicle with
.08 percent or more, by weight, of alcohol in the blood.
In some serious
circumstances, a driving while intoxicated case may be charged as a felony
(meaning the punishment can be a term in state prison). However, in most cases, a DUI / DWI will be
charged as a misdemeanor. Although the
punishment for a misdemeanor is less than the punishment for a felony, this is
still a very serious charge. A driving while
intoxicated charge will stay on your record for years in most instances.
Remember, there are two
ways to be convicted of D.U.I.:
Failing to operate a vehicle with the same caution and
characteristic of a sober person under the same or similar conditions; and/or
Driving a vehicle while having .08 percent or more,
by weight, of alcohol in your blood.
Submit a FREE
CASE EVALUATION FORM
with
AN ATTORNEY IN YOUR STATE.
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