When you are stopped by police officers for drunk driving, they have every reason to believe that you are driving under the influence. The next thing that you expect after stopping is to take a sobriety test of your choice. Since most people have tried to escape in the past and many have assaulted the police officers in the past, most states have implemented the consent laws that makes it compulsory for you to comply with the tests or face heavy fines coupled with your license suspension on the spot for avoiding the test.
The most common tests are the Breathalyzer test and the urine test. The urine test has however been abandoned in some states due to reliability issues hence you may not have that option. The most accurate test is the blood test as it shows all the drugs in the blood at the time of sampling.
When you fail the Breathalyzer test meaning that you go above the limit in your state, you will be held in custody by the police until somebody comes to bail you out or up to a time when you will sober up. This will be the case as well if you refuse to take the drug tests subjected to you by the police. You license will be suspended temporarily and your vehicle will be impounded for some days after the incident. This means that you will have to get some other means home. These penalties are however not applicable to those drivers who refuse to do the field sobriety tests.
After an arrest the next stage will be going to the court of law for a judge to determine your case. Since DWI and DUI are criminal offences, you have a right to a jury trial. After conviction, the judge will determine the punishment you will get for the offences that have been substantiated. There are known punishments in different states for drunk driving and refusing to take the sobriety tests depending on the level of intoxication. For repeat offenders, the punishment is more severe.
The following are some of the punishments that you will get for drunk driving:
- License suspension or revocation (The transport department can easily do this even if the court does not).
- Mandatory participation in at least 6 months of drunk driver education program.
- A jail term or an equivalent community service which should commence immediately.
- Pay a given amount in statutory fees which helps in offsetting the state’s budget on drunk driving incidents.
- You will also get some comment on your driver’s license which can translate to increase in insurance charges among others.
To get a lighter punishment and get your license back especially for a repeat offender, you will need the services of a skilled DUI lawyer. This is an experienced attorney who has been dealing with such cases for more than ten years and they understand every law related to driving with influence.
You can get a DUI lawyer with free consultation to help you analyses your case and predict the possible outcome not to mention getting your license back. At this age and time being suspended from driving is like getting a death sentence since it means that your life will be unbearable as you cannot move from work to your residence easily. Get the help you need as soon as possible and you will be in safe hands.