Now matter how it happens, or where it happens, getting stopped for driving while intoxicated (DWI- or more commonly known as a DUI-driving under the influence) is a serious offense, and considered a crime. Being accused of DUI offenses can have different consequences depending upon where in New York the person is pulled over.  New York laws (and all other states as well) define it as a crime to be driving while intoxicated with a blood alcohol content (BAC) level at or above 0.08 percent. However, some areas have even enacted zero tolerance laws that lower that level for underage drivers as well as high BAC laws that impose harsher penalties for those caught with levels of .16 to .20.

 

When someone is stopped for drunk driving (or for something else that makes a police officer assume that the person has been driving while under the influence), they will generally be required to take a sobriety test (blood, breath or urine) to determine the BAC level. Most areas in New York, especially in the city, have implied consent laws which means that the person must comply with a test or face fines and/or license suspension – sometimes right on the spot - for refusing to take the test.

 

In almost all DUI offenses, the person is arrested; but if the person refuses the test or is found to have a BAC over the state limit, chances are they will be taken into custody and brought to a police station where they are held until someone can pick them up. In addition, the person’s license may be temporarily suspended as well as having their vehicle impounded for a period of time after the incident. At this time, it is probably best the person hire a New York DWI attorney.  Depending on where the person lives, they might be able to find a local lawyer, like a Suffolk County DWI attorney, or a Long Island DWI lawyer.

 

Going to court is often the most difficult part of the DWI process. Aside from a possible administrative hearing that reviews the circumstances surrounding the arrest, generally every DWI case must go to court where a judge will decide the fate. In many cases, it is strictly based on the blood alcohol level or refusal to submit to a breath test.

 

Should the person be found guilty, the court will impose fines (and some add on an additional driver responsibility tax), suspend or even revoke the license, make the person that was driving under the influence partake in drunk driver education programs and require community service work. In addition, some judges may require the person to participate in alcohol or drug treatment programs as part of a parole program or have an ignition interlock device installed on the vehicle.

 

Sometimes the New York defense can fight for provisional, conditional, hardship or temporary licenses. This varies from case to case, judge and circumstances and is often granted only with participation in an education program or by showing a family hardship.