Drunk Driving Penalties in Florida
Many clients are shocked and dismayed when they realize the depth of the drunken driving penalties in Florida. In cases where the client has refused to take the arresting officer’s breathalyzer, urine, or blood test, the DMV will suspend his license for a year. However, if the client acquiesces to the officer’s request to blow into the breathalyzer machine, and the machine prints out a result that is .08 BAC or higher, then the DMV will suspend his license for six months. These suspensions are administrative suspensions, done by the DMV, and have nothing to do with whether or not the client is ultimately guilty or not of DUI in a court of law. The client can, through his DUI attorney, request a formal hearing on the DUI suspension if he acts within ten days of his DUI arrest. However, the client who waits to long to “lawyer up” because he does not understand the system will be out of luck. For many people, the loss of driving privileges is punishment enough.
However, the true drunken driving penalties begin to apply only upon a conviction for DUI. Realize, that these penalties I’m talking about only happen if the client pleads guilty or no contest to a DUI, or if he loses at trial. If the client’s Hillsborough or Pasco County DUI attorney can negotiate a lesser charge, like a reckless driving, or if the attorney can get a dismissal of the case, then these drunken driving penalties will not apply.
A first time DUI conviction these days is punishable by 180 days in the county jail. It will get you a fine approaching $1000.00, upwards of 12 months probation, mandatory DUI School and substance abuse evaluation and treatment, if necessary. Your car will be impounded. And your license will be suspended for anywhere from six to twelve months. Realize, this license suspension is completely separate from the DMV administrative suspension above; in effect, it can be getting suspended twice. Courts have found this perfectly legal and not double jeopardy.
A first time conviction with a breathalyzer result of over .15 will result in a fine in excess of $1500.00, up to 9 months in jail, and an extremely costly six months of an ignition interlock device installed on your car.
The penalties for a drunken driving conviction get much more costly, escalating with the amount of prior convictions and any damage caused by the incident. A third DUI conviction with a breathalyzer result in excess of .15, for example, carries with it a $4500 fine and the potential of 5 years in prison.
