Charged with a DWI? What's next?
I was charged with Driving While Impaired. What will happen to my license?
If your blood alcohol concentration was 0.08 or higher, your license will automatically be revoked for a 30 day civil revocation. If you refused to blow, your will also be revoked immediately for 30 days and can expect to receive a letter from DMV revoking your license for one year. If a blood test was used rather than a breath test, you may receive a civil revocation notice in the mail after the blood comes back from SBI if the BAC is 0.08 or higher.
Am I eligible for a limited license?
If you have no other suspensions on your license, you will be eligible for a pre-trial limited driving privilege 11 days after the date of offense. The initial paperwork for your limited license is filed on the 10th day, and then signed by a judge on the 11th day. In order to get a limited license you must get a substance abuse assessment and enroll in the recommended treatment and must get a DL-123 form from your insurance. Attorney Kristi Haddock will take care of filling out the limited driving privilege paperwork for you and will pull your driving record.
A pre-trial limited driving privilege (LDP) allows you to drive between day 11 and day 30 (which is the day you can get your full driving privileges and physical license back). An LDP allows you to drive Monday - Friday from 6am-8pm for household or work purposes. If you work a job with odd hours, you can petition the court for additional hours to drive so long as you have a letter from your employer stating the hours that you work outside of the typical 6am-8pm, Monday-Friday restriction
If you are convicted of a level 3, 4 or 5 DWI and have no other suspensions on your license, you will be eligible for a limited license following your conviction as well. That limited driving privilege has similar restrictions to the pre-trial limited license but lasts for the entire year of your post-conviction revocation.
How many times will I need to go to court?
It depends. Each county is different. Attorney Kristi Haddock handles DWI charges in Wake, Chatham, Durham, Lee and Harnett Counties. Each county has different court scheduling policies. About 3 years ago, Wake County started a DWI program which reduced the number of times DWI defendants must appear in court.
In Wake County, you can expect to appear for your first appearance a few weeks after you were charged on a Friday afternoon. If you have an attorney, the first appearance generally goes very quickly. After your first appearance Attorney Kristi Haddock will request a copy of your police report and will review it with you prior to your second court date, which is an administrative date. On the administrative date, which is usually about 2-3 months after your first appearance, you must let the prosecutor know whether you plan to request a trial or plea to your charges. Prior to making that decision Kristi Haddock will discuss all of your viable defenses with you and the potential benefits and downfalls of having a trial. Your third court date will be either your plea date or your trial date. If you select to have a trial, the case may get continued a few additional times as the court calendar is very full and the court can only accommodate a select number of trials each day.
Do I have a good defense for my DWI?
Attorney Kristi Haddock will discuss all of your viable defenses with you before you make a decision about how to handle your case. Kristi acts as your counselor and will let you know what arguments will stand in court, but ultimately you will have control of how you choose to handle your case.
Most DWI’s are won at the Probable Cause stage. In order to be arrested for Driving While Impaired, the officer must have had Probable Cause to arrest to you. The judge only considers what the officer knew before he arrested you, which means your blood alcohol concentration is not considered. The judge will consider testimony from the officer about your driving, whether there was an odor of alcohol, admission to drinking, or slurred speech etc. The judge will also consider the officer’s testimony about how you performed on the Standard Field Sobriety Tests. Standard Field Sobriety Tests are just that, “standard.” Meaning, if they are not conducted exactly as they are supposed to, they become very unreliable. These tests are designed for you to fail, with tricky instructions and drills that are difficult even for the most athletic and sober individual. The prosecutor must prove that the officer had enough reasons to arrest you. It is Attorney Kristi Haddocks role to put into question every piece of information that the officer says is evidence of impairment.
Call for a Free Consultation
If you were charged with Driving While Impaired (DWI / DUI) and would like to discuss your case, Attorney Kristi Haddock is available to provide a free initial consultation. Call or text 919-335-5656 or email Kristi@haddocklawfirm.com.