What is Criminal Defense For A DWI?
Those looking for a Sugar Land DWI lawyer or a criminal lawyer in support of their first offense DWI criminal case should understand the culture of the Fort Bend County courts. It should go without saying that Texas is not a state that is lenient on crime, and the courts are particular in how a case should be presented to the judge. DWI law in Texas doesn’t leave a lot of room for legal wiggling, and mistakes in the courtroom can be costly.
Although the first offense DWI is a misdemeanor (which might necessitate you hiring a car accident attorney), the penalties for this misdemeanor are a lot more severe than other first-time offenses. There have been people who experienced jail time on a first offense, depending upon the circumstances of their case. This is not a slap on the wrist crime any longer. DWI is a Class B Misdemeanor in the state of Texas, which means that it is comes with baseline punitive guidelines that include 3-180 days in jail and fines up to $2,000.00 for a class B misdemeanor and up to one year in hail and a fine up to $4,000.00 if the blood alcohol level is greater than .15. However, because this criminal offense has the potential for injury additional penalties can be applied depending upon the situation:
• Driving While Intoxicated with a Minor Child in the vehicle—this offense makes a DWI a felony with jail time of 180 days to 2 years and a fine of up to $10,000.
• Driving While Intoxicated Assault—if someone is injured due to someone driving under the influence, this changes the DWI to a felony with jail time of 180 days to 2 years, and a fine of up to $10,000
• Manslaughter—if someone died as a result of another person driving while under the influence of a drug or alcohol it is an automatic felony punishable by up to a $10,00 fine and jail time from 2 – 20 years.
If you are convicted of a DWI you will do at least three days in jail, unless your attorney has worked out a plea beforehand. It is also possible that if the case goes to Naegeli Deposition and Trial a jury will choose community supervision, commonly known as probation, instead. Avoiding jail time has a lot to do with the quality of your DWI attorney in Fort Bend County and his or her understanding of the court and judge you will be seeing. You will also face a suspension of your license as part of standard operating procedure. When this happens your law injury attorney will need to request an administrative license revocation hearing before an administrative judge in order to avoid having your license automatically suspended.