DWI Criminal Defense Lawyer - Hickory / Lenoir, North Carolina

Being charged with Driving While Intoxicated comes with serious repercussions and consequences, including jail time, loss of driving privileges, and monetary fines. For this reason, it is crucial you consult a Hickory / Lenoir DWI attorney. Finding an assertive and seasoned DWI lawyer in Hickory / Lenoir, North Carolina can help you understand your case, including any defenses you might take.

North Carolina General Statute - 20-138.1. Impaired driving.

• (a) Offense. - A person commits the offense of impaired driving if he drives any vehicle upon any highway, any street, or any public vehicular area within this State:
  • (1) While under the influence of an impairing substance; or
  • (2) After having consumed sufficient alcohol that he has, at any relevant time after the driving, an alcohol concentration of 0.08 or more. The results of a chemical analysis shall be deemed sufficient evidence to prove a person's alcohol concentration; or
  • (3) With any amount of a Schedule I controlled substance, as listed in G.S. 90-89, or its metabolites in his blood or urine.
• (a1) A person who has submitted to a chemical analysis of a blood sample, pursuant to G.S. 20-139.1(d), may use the result in rebuttal as evidence that the person did not have, at a relevant time after driving, an alcohol concentration of 0.08 or more.
• (b) Defense Precluded. - The fact that a person charged with violating this section is or has been legally entitled to use alcohol or a drug is not a defense to a charge under this section.
• (b1) Defense Allowed. - Nothing in this section shall preclude a person from asserting that a chemical analysis result is inadmissible pursuant to G.S. 20-139.1(b2).
• (c) Pleading. - In any prosecution for impaired driving, the pleading is sufficient if it states the time and place of the alleged offense in the usual form and charges that the defendant drove a vehicle on a highway or public vehicular area while subject to an impairing substance.
• (d) Sentencing Hearing and Punishment. - Impaired driving as defined in this section is a misdemeanor. Upon conviction of a defendant of impaired driving, the presiding judge shall hold a sentencing hearing and impose punishment in accordance with G.S. 20-179.
• (e) Exception. - Notwithstanding the definition of "vehicle" pursuant to G.S. 20-4.01(49), for purposes of this section the word "vehicle" does not include a horse. (1983, c. 435, s. 24; 1989, c. 711, s. 2; 1993, c. 285, s. 1; 2006-253, s. 9.)

DWI Charges in Hickory / Lenoir, North Carolina

According to the law in North Carolina, when you have been cited for violating the DWI statute, two simultaneous (yet separate) legal actions are taken against you. For one, an administrative action is brought against your driver's license (handled by the North Carolina DMV.) Also, a criminal action is taken in response to the DWI.

While both actions can result in the suspension of driving privileges, it is absolutely necessary to remember that there may be additional penalties to consider and that each of these actions must be handled separately.

Administrative Hearing

A person has 10 days to file for an administrative hearing from the Department of Motor Vehicles in North Carolina according to North Carolina law. If you fail to file for a hearing within ten (10) days, your right to the hearing is lost, and your North Carolina license is automatically suspended for the applicable statutory time frame. This is why it is crucial to quickly contact a DWI attorney if you are facing a DWI charge in Hickory / Lenoir, North Carolina.

In order to not lose your right to an administrative hearing, it is important that you submit your request to the Department of Motor Vehicles in North Carolina within 10 (ten) days.

DWI Penalties for First Time Offenders

• Jail Time - A first time DWI offender can face jail time for 24 hours, up to a maximum of 24 months jail time.
• Monetary Fines - The minimum fine for a first time DWI is $100 and can go as high as $2,000.
• DWI Chemical Test Refusal - Refusing to submit to a test when requested by Hickory / Lenoir police will result in the immediate suspension of North Carolina driving privileges for at least 30 days, and an additional minimum 12 (twelve) month revocation by the Department of Motor Vehicles in North Carolina. After six months, the court may allow for limited driving privileges to be restored.
• Commercial Drivers - If commercial drivers in North Carolina have a blood alcohol content (BAC) of 0.04 of over, they are in violation of the DWI statute. A first time DWI conviction will result in the loss of the (CDL) commercial driver's license for 1 year, with any subsequent DWI offenses resulting in a lifetime loss of the commercial license (CDL.)
• Driving Privileges - A DWI conviction will result in the unavoidable revocation of North Carolina driving privileges for one year.

Subsequent Offenses for DWI

Penalties are more severe for additional DWI violations. Please contact a lawyer in Hickory / Lenoir, North Carolina for a free DUI case evaluation. Due to the complexity of DWI laws, you may not be aware of your rights and the potential defenses available in your case. Because of this, an assertive and seasoned DWI lawyer can help you.

DWI Programs In North Carolina

The Booze It & Lose It campaign in North Carolina goes after drunk drivers with an extensive anti-DWI enforcement and education focus. Law officers use six mobile breath-alcohol testing units (better known as BATMobiles), to increase efficiency of on-site DWI processing throughout the state. Each BATMobile is equipped with workstations for Intoxilyzer 5000 breath test instruments, cellular telephones, computers, DWI checkpoint signs, traffic cones, traffic vests and everything else necessary for processing DWI suspects in Hickory / Lenoir, NC.

Between July 2006 and June 2007, there were almost 43,000 DWI convictions in North Carolina. State law requires that DWI offenders obtain a substance abuse assessment and complete the recommended intervention, which is either education or treatment. The Division of MH/DD/SAS in North Carolina oversees this process, making sure that assessment and intervention conditions are satisfied.

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