Driving while intoxicated offenses are often resolved in a defendant’s favor by dismissals, reductions, motions or getting a not guilty after a trial. However, occasionally clients decide to instruct their attorney to investigate or pursue a plea bargain. Legally, it is possible for a defendant to get jail time for a DWI 1st conviction. However, in over 25 years of defending people for DWI’s I have never had a client be assessed jail time for a DWI 1st or 2nd.
There are many considerations when negotiating plea bargains for 1st time DWI offenders. The obvious considerations are the length of probation which normally range from 6 months to 24 months and fines which can vary from a few hundred dollars to thousands as well as various conditions such as community service. Some counties may allow a plea to a less serious offense such as obstructing a highway or deferred adjudication on the DWI.
If a breath or blood test reflects a .15 or above concentration it is important for the lawyer to have the charge and plea reduced to under a .15 BAC. This reduction may allow a deferred adjudication plea whereby the case can be sealed or nondisclosed. Even a regular probation may be able to be sealed if certain conditions are met.
Generally to get a DWI 1st probation sealed will require that you have a clean record, that the offense be for under a .15 BAC, that no one be injured in an accident, and that you have the ignition interlock installed on your vehicle for 6 months or ½ the period of probation. There is also a waiting period for getting a DWI nondisclosed that ranges from 2 to 5 years depending on the facts. Many of these conditions can be addressed in a plea bargain such as reducing an enhanced DWI (over .15 BAC) to a DWI under a .15.
Were you arrested for DWI in South Texas? Contact Rush & Gransee today and let our San Antonio DWI lawyers fight for you.