Driving While Intoxicated (DWI) Laws In Houston Texas
Are you interested in learning more about DWI laws in Houston and Texas? At Butler Law we want to equip you with the proper knowledge, should the time come when you need it. For an outline of Texan DWI facts, actual excerpts of the law, your rights, read on below. Under Texan DWI law, you have a right to decline the blood and breathalyzer tests. If this is your first DWI however, refusing to take the tests can lead to the suspension of your driving rights for 180 days. You have a 15-day window to make an application for a hearing after your refusal to take the blood or breathalyzer tests or end up failing after accepting. You can’t prevent the suspension of your license if you do not make a request for a hearing within this period. You need to act immediately. If you turned down all sobriety tests, it becomes harder for the prosecution to convict you as they won’t have any evidence. When you are stopped under suspicion of driving while intoxicated, you don’t have to respond to any incriminating questions; such as “How much have you had to drink?” It must be demonstrated, beyond a reasonable doubt, that your mental and/or physical faculties were impaired or that you were driving a vehicle in a public location with a blood alcohol level that surpasses the set limit before you are convicted of DWI. With a minimum confinement term of 72 hours, a DWI is classified as a Class B misdemeanor. According to Texan law, the definition of intoxication is the inability to properly use your physical and mental faculties as a result of the use of various controlled substances, alcohol, drugs and dangerous drugs, or any other substances, or any combination of any of the substances mentioned above; or a having a .08 blood alcohol level. A special zero tolerance DWI charge is provided for under the law regarding drivers under the age of 21, minors if any blood alcohol content is detected. You have a right to request for a jury trial, where the judge and six jurors have to agree before a conviction is issued, and at this point, you’ll want the best DWI Lawyer you can get. Get to know us a little better, we’ll always be in your corner.
Driving While Intoxicated Penalties and Punishments in the state of Texas
1st Offense
- A maximum 2,000 dollar fine
- 72 hr to a 6-month jail sentence
- 90 day to 1-year license suspension period
2nd Offense
- A maximum 4,000 dollar fine
- 30 day to a 1-year jail sentence
- Six months to two-year license suspension period
3rd Offense
- Maximum 10, 000 dollar fine
- Two years to a ten-year jail term
- Six months to two-year license suspension period
- Driving While Intoxicated with a passenger at or under the age of 15
- Maximum 10,000 dollars fine
- 180 day to two-year state jail term
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