DWI License Suspension Lawyer in Dallas
Don't Lose Your License After a DWI Arrest in Dallas
If you have been arrested for driving while intoxicated (DWI), you are at risk of losing your driver's license to a suspension. Driving on the roads of Dallas and throughout the rest of Texas is not a right, contrary to what many people believe. It is a privilege, one which may be suspended or revoked when the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles has cause to do so.
Texas DWI Penalties
In most cases, a driver's license will be suspended after he or she has accumulated excessive points on his or her driving record based on a certain number of traffic violations. A single arrest for DWI, however, can lead to a mandatory suspension.
- A first-time DWI can lead to a suspension lasting for between 90 days and a full year
- A second offense is punishable with a suspension lasting for between 1 and 2 years.
- A third DWI offense is also punishable by a suspension lasting for as much as 2 years.
It is important to note that a repeat drunk driving conviction will be followed by an order to install and use an ignition interlock device (IID) in your vehicle, meaning that if you want to get your license back you will have to provide an alcohol-free breath sample every time you want to start the car.
Breath & Blood Test Refusal
It is also possible to lose your license even if you did not provide a breath or blood test and were not proven to be guilty of driving while intoxicated.
Under Texas' implied consent law, all drivers are required to submit to chemical testing when requested to do so in a DWI investigation.
Refusal to take a test is punishable by a 180-day suspension for a first offense of up to 2 years for a subsequent offense.
Dallas DWI Lawyer for Administrative License Suspension Hearings
Whether you failed a chemical test or refused to take the test, you have only 15 days to request a hearing with the Texas DMV where you can contest the administrative suspension of your driving privilege. Otherwise, you will automatically lose your license once 40 days have passed since your arrest. The administrative hearing is a separate action from the criminal case against you, though it is founded on generally the same evidence.
A DWI lawyer from Mathur Law Offices, P.C., can represent you throughout the entire process, from your administrative hearing to the criminal trial and at every stage in between. We know what a major negative impact a license suspension could have on your life, preventing you from commuting to work and taking your children to and from school, as well as denying you the freedom of being able to drive when and where you choose.
Let us fight to defend you against the consequences you face! Call for your DWI consultation today.