Second DWI Penalties

Question: What are the penalties for a second offense DWI in Texas?

Answer:

If you’re charged with a second DWI in Texas, there are a couple things that happen. The range of punishment is greater because instead of a Class B misdemeanor, it becomes a Class A misdemeanor. With a Class A misdemeanor, the fines are up to $4,000, and if you’re prior DWI was within five years, then you’ll lose your license. There’s a period where you can’t even get an occupational license. That’s really difficult for a lot of people because you’ll have a period of 90 days when you can’t even drive a car, and if you get caught driving a car, it’s another offense. Of course, that is dependent upon having the DPS hearing and losing, so it’s important on a DWI-second to request a DPS hearing within 15 days because you could have a period in which you can’t even get an occupational license. Some courts want to give somebody some days in jail as a condition of probation on the DWI-second. I’ve been able to avoid that with prior clients, and I think in most cases you can avoid it. There’s a lot of prosecutors and a lot of DAs that feel that somebody with a prior DWI and gets a second, that they need to spend a weekend in jail, but if you mount a defense, and so forth, they will drop that requirement.