Offenses: DWI Alcohol or Drugs
1st Offense
2nd Offense
3rd Offense
If you’re driving while intoxicated with a child younger than 15 years old in your vehicle, you may face:
In Texas you can face other penalties for driving under the influence or refusing a chemical test which are unrelated and in addition to criminal penalties. These penalties are known as Administrative License Revocation (ALR) and are handled by the Department of Public Safety. These are civil penalties which will result in driver’s license suspension for failing or refusing a chemical test. These penalties are in addition to of the outcome of criminal court proceedings.
All drivers in Texas are subject to implied consent, which means that if you drive, you’ve implied your consent to a chemical test if law enforcement suspects you’re drunk or otherwise impaired.
If you fail or refuse a chemical test (often a blood or breath test), you will face Administrative License Revocation (ALR), which is a type of license suspension unrelated to your criminal DWI penalties. ALR carries specific penalties for refusing or failing chemical tests.
Adults
Minors (Under 21 years old)
Adults
Minors (Under 21 years old)
ALR Procedures
Here’s how chemical test refusals or failures and ALR usually play out:
Reinstating your Texas driver license after a DWI conviction is fairly straightforward, though by no means quick and easy. In summary, you must:
License Reinstatement Fees and Other Surcharges
You will face a variety of fees and surcharges related to license reinstatement and maintenance, and some of these depend on your age and circumstances.
For example, everyone must pay a $125 fee for license reinstatement after an Administrative License Revocation (ALR), which can happen whenever you fail or refuse to submit to a chemical test.
You also have the annual surcharges associated with the Driver Responsibility Program. These are the surcharges listed above under “DWI Penalties: Adults” and can range from $1,000 to $2,000 each year for 3 years.
In addition to the standard criminal fine, Texas imposes mandatory state traffic fines for DWI convictions. For a first conviction within a 36-month period, the defendant must pay a fine of $3,000 (V.T.C.A., Transportation Code § 709.001)[6]. For a second or subsequent conviction within a 36-month period, the fine increases to $4,500 (V.T.C.A., Transportation Code § 709.001)[6]. However, if the defendant's alcohol concentration level was 0.15 or more at the time of analysis, the fine is $6,000 "for a first or subsequent conviction" regardless of the number of prior convictions (V.T.C.A., Transportation Code § 709.001)[6]. These fines are "in addition to the fine prescribed for the specific offense" (V.T.C.A., Transportation Code § 709.001)[6].
Texas law mandates ignition interlock devices under several circumstances. For a second or subsequent DWI offense committed within five years of the most recent preceding offense, the court must order the defendant to have an ignition interlock device installed on each motor vehicle owned or operated by the defendant (V.T.C.A., Penal Code § 49.09)[3]. The device must remain installed until the first anniversary of the ending date of the license suspension period (V.T.C.A., Penal Code § 49.09)[3]. Additionally, a magistrate must require installation of an ignition interlock device as a condition of release for defendants charged with a subsequent DWI offense, though the magistrate may waive this requirement if it would not be in the best interest of justice (Vernon's Ann.Texas C.C.P. Art. 17.441)[7]. For defendants on community supervision, courts must require ignition interlock devices for those with prior DWI convictions or when the defendant's blood alcohol concentration was 0.15 or more (Vernon's Ann.Texas C.C.P. Art. 42A.408)[8].
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