A driver who is arrested for driving while intoxicated risks losing his or her driver’s license and incurring a criminal conviction. With so much at stake, it is important to hire an experienced DWI lawyer to mount a vigorous defense.
The St. Louis DWI defense lawyers at Bruntrager & Billings, P.C., have been helping drivers defend DWI and DUI cases since 1954. When it comes to challenging the legality of an arrest or the administration of blood-alcohol tests, the trial attorneys at Bruntrager & Billings, P.C., have more than 100 years of combined criminal litigation experience.
Legal Limits
In Missouri, a driver over the age of 21 whose blood-alcohol content is 0.08 percent or higher may be charged with drunken driving, as may a driver under the age of 21 who is found to have a BAC of 0.02 percent or greater. A driver who refuses to take a breath, blood or urine test may still be charged with DWI, driving under the influence (a.k.a. DUI) or other alcohol-related offenses.
Two separate cases arise from drunken driving charges and arrests: an administrative case that deals with the issue of whether the driver will lose his or her license and a criminal proceeding that involves charges of DWI or related offenses.
Administrative Proceeding
Generally the license of a driver whose BAC is over the legal limit or who refuses to take a breath, blood or urine test may be revoked or suspended beginning 15 days after the arrest unless a hearing is requested. Because of the small window of time in which a drivershall request a hearing and contest the suspension or revocation, it is important to obtain representation quickly after an arrest.
The duration of a suspension or revocation varies:
- First-time failure: A driver whose BAC is above the legal limit for the first time during a five-year period will have his or her license suspended for 30 days. Before the expiration of the 30 days, a driver with proof of insurance may obtain a 60-day restricted driving permit, also known as a hardship license, that allows him or her to drive to work, to school or to a treatment program.
- Two or more failures: A driver whose BAC is above the legal limit for the second time or more during a five-year period will have his or her license suspended for one year and is not eligible for a hardship license.
- First-time refusal to test: The license privileges of a driver who refuses to submit to a blood, urine or breath test are suspended for one year, but a first-time offender may apply for a hardship license after 90 days.
- Two or more refusals: The driver’s license is suspended for one year, and the driver is ineligible for a hardship license.
Criminal Proceeding
As in the administrative process, an individual who has been charged by the state of Missouri with DWI faces a variety of penalties that vary with the individual’s offense history.
- First offense: This is a class B misdemeanor, punishable by a six-month jail sentence, a maximum fine of $500 plus court costs, a 30-day suspension of driving privileges, and a 60-day restricted license period. The court may also order an ignition-interlock device and completion of the Substance Abuse Traffic Offender Program, better known as SATOP.
- Second offense: This is a class A misdemeanor, punishable by a jail sentence of as long as one year, a maximum fine of $1,000 plus court costs and a five-year revocation of driving privileges. A driver is not eligible to apply for a hardship license until two years of the revocation period have been completed. The court may also order an ignition-interlock device, treatment programs or attendance at meetings of an alcohol-recovery program.
- Three or more offenses: A driver with three or more convictions within a 10-year period is deemed a persistent offender and is considered to have committed a class D felony, punishable by as much as five years in prison, a maximum fine of $5,000 plus court costs and a 10-year revocation of driving privileges. If the DWI is a third offense but is not a felony, a hardship license may be applied for after three years of the revocation period have been completed.
Defenses
The lawyers at Bruntrager & Billings, P.C., will examine your case and vigorously defend your rights. We will investigate the legality of the traffic stop to ensure that probable cause for the stop existed and to determine whether the seizure of any evidence was conducted properly. We will also review the administration of the blood, alcohol or breath test to ensure that the proper protocols were followed.
Our attorneys are former prosecutors, and we know how to prepare your case. We help clients avoid criminal convictions, jail time and license suspension. Contact our firm online or call 314-646-0066 to schedule your free initial consultation.