| Get help from a Nevada DUI Lawyer or Attorney
Being arrested for DUI is a serious offense that can have significant consequences, including jail time, loss of driving privileges, and monetary fines. It is imperative that anyone facing such a charge understand what challenges they will encounter. Seeking the legal advice of a competent and experienced DUI attorney will help you understand all of your rights and options.
What happens if I was arrested for DUI?
Under Nevada law, once you have been cited for violating the DUI statute, the state initiates two simultaneous, yet separate legal actions against you. The Criminal Action is in response to the ticket that was issued to you, while the Administrative Action is brought against your driver’s license by the Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles. While both actions can result in the suspension of your driving privileges, it is important to remember that there may be additional penalties to consider and each action must be handled separately.
Administrative Hearing
Administrative hearings (DMV Drivers License Hearings) will be triggered once you are arrested for DUI. Depending on whether you did a Breathlyzer Machine Test at the police station, or a Blood Withdrawal at the police station, will depend on the time frame and urgency of getting yourself a “temporary” drivers license to enable yourself to drive. If you took a Breathlyzer Machine Test at the police station, your actual Nevada Drivers License would have been confiscated and then you would have received a pink slip of paper which is now your drivers license for a 7-day period only. After the seven days have passed you are now driving on a suspended drivers license, unless you (or your attorney) has made a DMV Drivers License Hearing request. Your attorney would then go to the DMV hearing to protect your driving privileges. Those hearing dates are several months after the request is made. If you took a Blood Withdrawal at the police station, you would have been able to keep your actual Nevada Drivers License. However, once the blood draw sample had been analyzed and determined that you had an BAC (blood alcohol content) of over 0.8%, you will get a DMV letter stating that they are now proceeding with taking away your driving privileges for the 90-day suspension period. Your attorney should know what standards the Administrative Law Judge must follow in order to protect your driving privileges.
DUI Penalties for First Time Offenders
Jail Time
A first time DUI offender could face minimum imprisonment of 2 days in jail, up to 6 months. Community service may be ordered in lieu of jail time, for a minimum of 48 hours, up to a maximum of 96 hours.
DUI SCHOOL
8 hours.
VIP (VICTIM IMPACT PANEL)
1 1/2 hours depending on which jurisdiction.
Monetary Fines
The minimum mandatory fine for a first time DUI is $400.00, while the maximum fine is $1000.00.
Driving Privileges
A DUI conviction results in the revocation of driving privileges for 90 days.
Field Sobriety / Chemical Test Refusal
These two concepts are constantly misunderstood. In the State of Nevada, SFSTs (Standardized Field Sobriety Tests) are usually the HGN (Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus), W&T (9-step Walk and Turn), and OLS (One Leg Stand) tests. In Nevada, if you “refuse” (politely refuse is my recommendation) these SFSTs, there are no penalties as in many other States. In these other States, if you refuse SFSTs, the person’s driving privileges will be revoked for up to one year. That does not automatically happen in Nevada.
Chemical Testing is the Breathlyzer Machine Test at the police or the Blood Withdrawal at the police station. On your 1st offense of DUI, you are generally given a choice between Breath or Blood. If you refuse to do either then the police officers will use force and do a blood withdrawal.
Commercial Drivers
Commercial drivers are in violation of the DUI statute with a blood alcohol content (BAC) of 0.04%. A first time DUI conviction will result in the loss of the commercial driver’s license for 1 year, while any subsequent DUI offenses will result in a lifetime loss of the commercial license.
Alcohol Evaluation
If your BAC (Blood Alcohol Content) wa higher than 0.18%, there will be a Alcohol Evaluation. Then the Court may require additional penalties besides the DUI School, VIP, and Monetary Fines.
DUI Subsequent Offenses
Penalties are increasingly more severe for any additional DUI violations. Due to the complexity of DUI laws, you may not be aware of your rights and the potential defenses available to your case. An experienced and competent attorney can guide you through this emotionally challenging process. Please contact a lawyer for an immediate, free consultation. |