|
A DUI Conviction is Forever
A DUI conviction or plea of "guilty" or nolo
contendere will be a permanent part of your
driving
record and your criminal history. It does not "come
off" your record after five (5) years... it never
comes off your record. Moreover, a conviction, guilty
plea or
nolo contendere plea is reported to the
Georgia Department of Public Safety, which in turn,
reports it to the National Driver's License Registry.
These computer records are accessible to driver's
licensing agencies nationwide. This is why fighting a
DUI case is so important to so many persons charged
with this offense.
Special Note to Non-Resident Licensees (Persons
Licensed by a State Other than GEORGIA). CLICK HERE to
learn about penalties for Non-Residents.
Legal
Limits of Alcohol Concentration - Three Different
Standards
An
alcohol content reading of 0.02 BAC is
the level for per se (unlawful alcohol level)
intoxication for persons under the age of 21 at the
time of arrest who are accused of violating subsection
"k" of the DUI code. This means that if you are under
21 years of age and submitted to the state's test and
the result was 0.020 or higher, you may be accused of
driving with an unlawful blood alcohol level under
subsection "k" plus be accused of "DUI - Less Safe"
under paragraph 1 of subsection "a," based on other
evidence (including manifestations of impairment,
driving conduct, or other evidence).
An alcohol content reading of 0.04 BAC is the level for per se
(unlawful alcohol level) intoxication for persons
accused under subsection "i" of the DUI code that were
stopped while operating a commercial vehicle. This
means that if you submitted to the state's test and
the result was 0.04 or higher, you may be accused of
driving a commercial vehicle while having an unlawful
blood alcohol level. If a driver is stopped in a
commercial vehicle and the State's test reveals ANY
alcohol, a 24-hour out-of-service order will be
issued, and the truck will be impounded until said
time period is over.
An alcohol content
reading of
0.08 is the level for per se (unlawful alcohol level)
intoxication for persons who are age 21 and older and
accused of violating subsection 40-6-391(a)(5) of
Georgia law. The prosecutor, however, must be able to
prove that the test given was a valid test, and that
it was taken within three (3) hours of driving or
being in actual physical control of a vehicle, from
alcohol consumed PRIOR TO the driving of the vehicle
ended. This means that if you submit to testing and
yield a result over 0.079, you will be accused of
driving with an unlawful blood alcohol level under
subsection "(a)(5)." No evidence of "bad driving" or
visible signs or manifestations of impairment is
REQUIRED to obtain a conviction for this type of DUI.
DUI - "drugs" and DUI - "alcohol and drugs"
Other than the two methods of proving DUI-alcohol for the
various "types" of vehicles or drivers, Georgia law
also provides for prosecution of other types of
"impaired" driving. A person can be prosecuted for
driving under the influence of
alcohol and drugs, or
drugs (prescribed or non-prescribed), or DUI
contraband (illegal) drugs such as marijuana or
cocaine. If the person is accused of being DUI by
multiple "substances" (example: alcohol in one "count"
and drugs in a different "count"), the jury
(or judge
--- if a non-jury trial) can convict on both and two
sentences can be imposed.
What Does the Five-Year
"Look-back" Period Relate to?
"Repeat offender"
status for MANDATORY increased minimum punishment in
DUI cases is determined in Georgia-based upon a
five-year "look-back" period. This status is used for
purposes of increased mandatory minimum punishment.
This "look-back" period has nothing to do with how
long a DUI remains on your record. In deciding the
extent to which a repeat offender should be punished,
most judges will look at a person's lifetime record,
not just the five-year "look-back" period. Also,
Georgia law requires out-of-state convictions to be
considered as "priors," in the same manner as Georgia
convictions. Whenever the five-year "look-back" period
is discussed, the method of counting is as follows:
- take the DATE OF ARREST for the previous DUI
offense (not the disposition or plea date);
- the prior DUI "counts" against you, whether it
was disposed of as a plea of guilty, or with a trial
that resulted in a "guilty" verdict or where a
nolo
contendere plea was ultimately accepted; and
- take the DATE OF ARREST in the current case, and
determine if more than five full years have expired.
Due to the SEVERE increased punishment for repeat
offenses within the five-year "look-back" period,
obtain precise dates of any prior drunk driving
convictions before your initial visit to our office.
A bad record can come back to haunt a person facing
a current DUI charge. Remember that a judge can
ignore (and many do) the five-year "look-back"
period and review your ENTIRE record for purposes
of:
- increasing your punishment (up to the maximum
penalties set by law) over that punishment which
he/she would give another person with no prior
record;
- at your trial, allowing the prosecutor (in
some instances, after notice and a pre-trial
hearing) to introduce evidence of prior instances
where you were convicted of driving while
impaired, or even plead guilty or
nolo contendere
to a driving under the influence charge. The
prosecutor may attempt to bring in evidence from
any DUI case, even those cases greater than five
years old and those from other states. This is
called "introducing evidence of similar
transactions." Some judges will not readily admit
similar transaction evidence from other DUI cases,
due to its tremendous prejudicial harm to the
current case. Other judges routinely permit prior
transaction evidence into the current case; and
- not allowing a nolo contendere plea even where
otherwise eligible for this special plea (a
valuable right, for civil damages consequences, if
an accident has occurred).
The counting of "first," "second," etc., relates to
which offense this is within the five-year "look-back"
period. This determines minimum punishment that must
be assessed if a guilty verdict or plea is entered, or
(if available) upon entry of a
nolo contendere plea.
SPECIAL NOTE FOR ANY CONVICTION OF DUI OR PLEA OF
GUILTY OR NOLO CONTENDERE: The sentencing court has
broad powers at sentencing insofar as whether to grant
"probation," rather than put the person convicted in
jail. Furthermore, if probation is granted (in lieu of
jail time), the conditions of probation can be
extremely onerous and restrictive. Moreover, all
jurisdictions charge monthly "supervision" fees so
that the person pays for his/her probationary
sentence. Georgia law requires that the balance of 12
months of probation (deducting for any jail time
imposed) on every DUI conviction. The judge imposing
the sentence can require "reporting" or
"non-reporting" probation after other conditions of
the sentence are met. This can not only lower total
costs (most non-reporting months are not assessed a
supervision fee), but can eliminate time-consuming
visits or call to a probation officer. Caution: Even
non-reporting probation --- if violated --- can result
in a revocation of all or part of the remaining term
of probation. This means being put in jail, or some
alternative form of incarceration
(examples:
work-release confinement, home confinement, alcohol
and drug residential facility). The length of
supervised probation is optional with the judge, up to
the length of the maximum amount of jail time, minus
any days spent in jail.
DUI First offense: Considered to be a
"Simple
Misdemeanor" under Georgia law (NOTE: No person who has had a prior nolo contendere
plea or guilty plea or verdict within the five-year
"look-back" period is eligible to receive the benefits
of a nolo contendere plea. A nolo plea is unavailable
for persons arrested July 1, 1997 or after who take a
State test and have a result higher than 0.15%. Also,
drivers under age 21 at the time of arrest are
completely ineligible for "nolo" treatment.)
CLICK HERE to learn about the penalties for a first
offense DUI.
For additional information, click the category of
interest below. |
1800 DUI Laws
