Drunk Driving / OUI Attorney - Quincy Court - Hingham Court
Experienced MA criminal defense lawyer for drunk driving, DUI, OUI cases - eastern MA, Norfolk County, Suffolk County

Experienced Mass. DUI OUI lawyer, drunk driving, criminal defense attorney

Drunk Driving or Operating Under the Influence:

FIRST OFFENSE:
Jail: Not more than 2 1/2 years House of Correction
Fine: $500-$5,000
License suspended for 1 year; work/education hardship considered in 3 months; general hardship in 6 months
 

Breath/Chemical Test Refusal:
For refusing the breath test after an arrest, your license is immediately suspended for 180 days, before you even have appeared in court.

You have 15 days from the date of the incident to appeal the suspension before the Registry of Motor Vehicles. You have a limited right of appeal only on certain grounds and are fighting an uphill battle from the moment you request a hearing. It is imperative you seek the advice of an experienced attorney.

 

Alternative Disposition:
Plead to Continuance without a Finding aka CWOF. You admit that there sufficient fact to find you guilty but request a CWOF. At the end of the stated probation period the case is considered dismissed. However, an exception exists for all future OUI charges.
Pay a number of fines and court fees (over $2500 in total), as well as an increase in your annual insurance premium. Unsupervised probation for one year.
Mandatory participation in 16-week (1 hour) alcohol & drug education program paid for by defendant.
License suspended for 45 to 90 days (not including any penalty for breath test refusal)
License suspension is 210 days for those under the age of 21.
You are eligible for a hardship license within 3 business days, (in most cases).
 

SECOND OFFENSE:
Jail: Not less than 60 days (30 day mandatory), not more then 2 1/2 years
Fine: $600-$10,000
License suspended for 2 years, work/education hardship considered in 1 year;
General hardship in 18 months.
In almost every case, with a breath test refusal or failure you won't be eligible for a hardship or full license restoration for at least 3 years total.

As of January 1, 2006 - An ignition interlock device must be installed in your car at your own expense for 2 years, when you become eligible for hardship or license reinstatement.

 

Breath/Chemical Test Refusal:
If you refuse to take a breath test on a 2nd offense DUI charge in Massachusetts, your license is immediately suspended for 3 years, before you even appear in court.

You have 15 days from the date of the incident to appeal the suspension before the Registry of Motor Vehicles. You have a limited right of appeal only on certain grounds and are fighting an uphill battle the moment you request a hearing. It is imperative you seek the advice of an experienced attorney.

 

Alternative Disposition:
2 years probation
14 day confined (inpatient) alcohol treatment program paid for by the defendant
License suspended for two years, work/education hardship considered in 1 year; general hardship in 18 months.
As of January 1, 2006-An Ignition interlock device must be installed in your car at your own expense for 2 years as a condition of any license reinstatement (including hardship license).
 

Cahill Disposition; (Only available for OUI 2 offense outside ten years):
If your prior offense is over 10 years ago, you may be eligible for a 24D disposition, which would only be the penalties of a first offense. The Registry, however, would still treat you as a 2nd offender for license reinstatement.

Even if the prior is in another state, or decades old, you will be forced to get an interlock device installed in your car as a condition of license reinstatement. The Registry is harsh on this point, and there is nothing any lawyer can do about it.

 

THIRD OFFENSE:
Jail: Not less than 180 days (150 day mandatory), not more than 5 years State Prison (felony status)
May be served in a prison treatment program
Fine $1,000-$15,000
License suspended for 8 years, work/education hardship considered in 2 years; general hardship in 4 years Commonwealth may seize, keep, and/or sell your vehicle.
 

Breath/Chemical Test Refusal:
If you refuse to take a breath test on a 3rd offense DUI charge in Massachusetts, your license is immediately suspended for 5 years, before you even appear in court.

You have 15 days from the date of the incident to appeal the suspension before the Registry of Motor Vehicles. You have a limited right of appeal only on certain grounds and are fighting an uphill battle the moment you request a hearing. It is imperative you seek the advice of an experienced attorney.

For any third offense OUI conviction, you are facing a mandatory 5-6 months in jail if found guilty.

 

FOURTH OFFENSE:
Jail: Not less than 2 years (1 year minimum mandatory), not more than 5 years in State Prison (4th Offense OUI is a Felony Offense)
Fine $1,500-$25,000
License suspended for 10 years, work/education hardship considered in 5 years; general hardship in 8 years
Commonwealth may seize, keep, and/or sell your vehicle.
 

Breath/Chemical Test Refusal:
If you refuse to take a breath test on a 4th offense DUI charge in Massachusetts your license is immediately suspended for life.

You have 15 days from the date of the incident to appeal the suspension before the Registry of Motor Vehicles. You have a limited right of appeal only on certain grounds and are fighting an uphill battle the moment you request a hearing. It is imperative you seek the advice of an experienced attorney.

 

FIFTH OFFENSE, AND OVER:
Jail: Not less than 2 1/2 years (24 mos. minimum mandatory), not more than 5 years (felony status)
Fine $2,000-$50,000
License Revoked/Suspended for life, no possibility of a hardship license.
If convicted on a sixth (may 6th), seventh (7th), or greater OUI offense, the punishment and mandatory jail time you are risking if found guilty will even longer.
OUI-Serious Bodily Injury:
If you are charged with an OUI where someone is injured, the case becomes more complicated, and is extremely serious. The minimum and maximum penalty varies depending on how the case is charged, and how aggressively the Commonwealth pursues it.

 

Child Endangerment While OUI:
The charge of child endangerment while OUI provides for an "enhanced penalty" of a mandatory minimum 90 days in jail, to be served after, and not concurrently with, the sentence imposed on the underlying OUI offense. In addition, the charge carries a minimum of a $1,000 fine, which can increase to up to $10,000 after a conviction.

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Whenever police find children who appear to be under the age of 14 in the car with a person being arrested for OUI, they will automatically include the charge of child endangerment while OUI, along with the underlying OUI charge.

In subsequent offense cases, the mandatory minimum term of imprisonment is increased to 6 months, and the minimum fine is increased to $5,000.

In many cases the Department of Children and Families will get involved to determine if it believes that the children's best interests would be served by being placed in a foster home.