HAVE YOU BEEN CHARGED WITH YOUR FIRST DUI OFFENSE?
In many cases, being charged with driving under the influence (DUI) is the first offense that an individual will ever have to face. Even for a first time DUI, you are exposed to incarceration for up to 1 year and a money fine; but I am almost always able to get something called a PBJ (Probation Before Judgment) if this is your first time—and sometimes a “Not Guilty” or dismissal. I understand that this is likely a frightening and emotional situation for you.
If you’ve been charged with a DUI, give me a call and I’ll show you that I can help. You’ll speak directly to me, and I’m available 24 hours a day.
You may face serious penalties if you are convicted of DUI for the first time. My advice:
If this is your first DUI, chances are that your “worst case scenario” is that you’ll get probation before judgment, or a “PBJ”, meaning that any guilty finding will be stricken and you’ll get probation. If you do enough alcohol counseling before court, your probation might even be supervised. So you’ll get a fine somewhere in the range of $250 plus $100 court costs, and a period of supervised or unsupervised probation.
With regard to your driver license, you will be eligible for a work-restricted license if you blew under a .15. If you blew a .15 or higher, or refused to blow, the restriction can be 90-120 days unless you place an ignition interlock on your vehicle, in which case you can drive without restriction for a year. There is a monthly charge for that.
Unfortunately, PBJ’s cannot be expunged from your record.
If you have a good defense to the charge, we can litigate the case in court, and possibly get you a “Not Guilty”. If that happens, or if the State drops the charges, you can get an expungement so that the arrest will not appear on your public record.
Of course, if you try the case, you are exposed to anywhere from 60 days to 1 year in jail, plus a fine. That rarely happens on a first offense.