DWI Resource Center

DWI CHARGE! NOW WHAT?

First of all, take a deep breath. Keep in mind that your case is one of thousands that happen each year in the State of Minnesota. However, keep in mind that the penalties associated with even a first time DWI are not minor. Quite frankly, a decision not to even consult with an attorney about your case is a big mistake!

Obviously you have a number of questions about your situation. Below you can find some answers about criminal penalties, license revocation, plate impoundment and vehicle forfeiture. After reviewing, call us at (612) 465-8581 for a free legal consultation.

CRIMINAL PENALTIES

The criminal penalties for a DWI offense in Minnesota are based upon the number of aggravating factors present at the time the crime is committed:

Number of Aggravating Factors	Criminal Classification	Maximum Penalty
none	4th Degree DWI, misdemeanor	$1,000 fine and/or 90 days jail
one	3rd Degree DWI, gross misdemeanor	$3,000 fine and/or 1 year jail
two	2nd Degree DWI, gross misdemeanor	$3,000 fine and/or 1 year jail
three	1st Degree DWI, felony (fourth offense only)	$14,000 fine and/or 7 years jail

Fourth Degree DWI

A Fourth Degree DWI is classified as a misdemeanor. A person operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated can be charged and convicted of a Fourth Degree DWI in situations in which such an individual has no other driving while impaired violations within ten years before the current case. In addition, there must have been no aggravating factors present and the driver cannot have refused to submit to the “evidentiary” chemical test of the person’s blood, breath or urine. This is the lowest level of DWI charge that a person can face in the State of Minnesota.

A person convicted of Fourth Degree DWI can face up to 90 days in jail and up to a $1,000 fine.

Third Degree DWI

A Third Degree DWI is a considered to be what is known as a gross misdemeanor. A person can be charged and convicted of a Third Degree DWI when that individual has had one prior driving while impaired violation or alcohol related driver’s license revocation within ten years of the present offense. Even if an individual has no priors, he or she could still be charged with a Third Degree DWI if one aggravating factor, as defined by Minnesota law, was present at the time of the offense.

A person also can be charged with a Third Degree offense, if he or she elects to refuse to submit to the “evidentiary” chemical test of the person’s blood, breath or urine. A person convicted of Third Degree DWI or Refusal to submit to chemical testing can face up to one year in jail and up to a $3,000 fine.

Second Degree DWI

A Second Degree DWI is classified in Minnesota as a gross misdemeanor. A person can face being charged and convicted of a Second Degree DWI in the event that the individual has had two prior driving while impaired violations or alcohol related driver’s license revocations within ten years of the present offense. Even if an individual has no priors, he or she could still be charged with a Second Degree DWI if two aggravating factors, as defined by Minnesota law, were present at the time of the offense.

Alternatively, a person can also be charged with Second Degree offense, if he or she refuses to submit to the “evidentiary” chemical test of the person’s blood, breath, or urine and one aggravating factor, as established by Minnesota law, was present at the time of arrest. A person convicted of Second Degree DWI or Refusal to submit to chemical testing can face up to one year in jail and up to a $3,000 fine.

First Degree DWI

A First Degree DWI is classified as a felony in the State of Minnesota. A person will be charged with a First Degree DWI, if he or she has had three prior driving while impaired violations or alcohol related driver’s license revocations within ten years of the present offense. A person will also be charged with First Degree DWI, if he or she has been convicted of a prior Felony DWI at any time in the past. In addition, a person will be charged with First Degree DWI, if that individual has a prior conviction for a felony charge of criminal vehicular operation or criminal vehicular homicide. Aggravating factors are not taken into consideration.

A person convicted of their first Felony DWI can face up to seven years in prison and up to a $14,000 fine.

ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTIES

Separate from any criminal penalties that may arise from a DWI conviction, Minnesota law provides for three administrative sanctions that commence immediately upon arrest/testing:

(1) Administrative License Revocation (ALR)

Whenever the implied consent law is invoked during the arrest process, the person’s driving privileges can be revoked immediately following any test failure or test refusal. The person is given a seven-day temporary license to drive before the revocation becomes effective. The period of license revocation changed on July 1, 2011 and are as follows:

First Time Offense and if your blood alcohol concentration (BAC) level is at .08 to .15, the law, for the most part, remains unchanged. The driver will still be facing a 90 day driver’s license revocation. The only difference is that the individual will now have a choice. As before, the driver can choose to serve a hard 15 day revocation before he or she would be ellgible to drive with a limited license for work. Otherwise, the driver can choose to enroll in the interlock program (IID)and have full driving privileges for the revocation period.

However, if your first DWI offense registers a BAC of .16 or higher, the law will change dramatically. The drivers license revocation period will now be for one year, as opposed to 90 days under the previous law (or 6 months if the BAC was .20 or more). However, the driver has the choice of driving with full driving privileges, if they agree to enroll in the interlock program.

Refusing to take a chemical test also warrants a revoked license for a year. Should you wish to have full driving privileges during this period, you’ll have to agree to install the device on your vehicle. However, the first time refusal driver is still eligible for a work permit or limited license after only 15 days for the remainder of the one year revocation, if they choose not to participate in the interlock program.

Second DWI offense and under a BAC of .16 within ten years of the prior, you will have to install an IID or work through an entire year without a driver’s license. Previously, the revocation period was 6 months and the driver was eligible for a limited license after 90 days.
A driver with a second DWI offense of a BAC of .16 and above or refusal to submit to chemical testing will now face a two-year license revocation period as opposed to only one-year. During this period, a driver can regain full driving privileges by agreeing to have an ignition interlock device installed on the vehicle/s they drive.
Repeat DWI offenders, such as those who have had their third DWI offense or more within a ten year period since the first DWI or their third offense after a special review, will now have their drivers license revoked or canceled for three years as opposed to only one year. During this three year period, the driver can only drive while having the interlock device and being part of the program. In addition, the first year with the device will only be with a limited license. It’s not until the second and third years that the driver will be able to have full driving privileges on the interlock device.
For those drivers who have been charged with their fourth or fifth DWI offense, the news gets even worse. These drivers, under the new law, are now looking at license revocation / cancellation periods of 4 or 6 years respectively. Furthermore, this driver will also have to install the interlock device in their car and be part of the program for the entire revocation / cancellation period. As with the third time DWI offender, the first year on the interlock program will only be with a limited license.
Lastly, with regard to the repeat DWI offender, in addition to the lengthy revocation/cancellation periods with the interlock device, they will also have to complete additional conditions before they are ever reinstated. These conditions include completion of a treatment program and verification of a successful 3 years of the interlock program. This will be followed by a 10 year restriction of no use of alcohol or any controlled substance. After 10 years, the driver can petition to have the no-use restriction removed, if they have remained compliant.The person may appeal the administrative license revocation, either by filing a request for administrative review from the DPS or by filing a request for judicial review though the court.

How do I get my License back?

First and foremost, an Implied Consent Petition should be filed to adequately protect your rights. This must be done within 30 days of your arrest, or you lose this right forever!

To reinstate your driving privileges you must:

Written Test: You must pass a DWI written test.
Reinstatement Fee: There is a reinstatement fee of $680.00.
Work Permit: You need to talk with a Driver Evaluator.

In addition to the requirements above, persons with multiple DWI offenses may be required to comply with additional conditions including IID, attendance at a DWI seminar, providing documentation of AA attendance, completing treatment and after care programs, and remaining abstinent from alcohol for more than a year.

Call us at (612) 465-8581 for a free legal consultation.

THE POLICE TOOK MY LICENSE PLATES.

(2) Administrative License Plate Impoundment

A plate impoundment violation is an impaired driving violation involving an aggravating factor, including and offense:

occurring within ten years of a qualified prior impaired driving violation
involving an alcohol concentration of .20 or more
having a child under the age of 16 present in the vehicle
occurring while the person’s license has been cancelled as inimical to public safety

Plate impoundment applies to:

the vehicle used in the plate impoundment violation
any vehicle owned, registered, or leased in the name of the violator, whether alone or jointly.

A plate impoundment order is issued by the arresting officer at the time of arrest and is effective immediately. The officer also seizes the plates and issues a temporary vehicle permit that is valid for seven days (or 45 days if the violator is not the owner).

The minimum term of plate impoundment is one year, during which time the violator may not drive any motor vehicle unless the vehicle displays specially-coded plates and the person has a valid license to drive. The violator is also subject to certain restrictions when selling or acquiring a vehicle during the impoundment period.

Special license plates (whiskey plates) – signifying to law enforcement that the regular plates have been impounded for an impaired driving violation – may be issued for the vehicle(s) provided that:

the violator has a properly license substitute driver;
a member of the violator’s household is validly licensed;
the violator has been validly re-licensed; or
the owner is not the violator and is validly licensed.

It is a crime for a driver whose plates have been impounded to attempt to evade the plate impoundment law in certain specified ways, or for another person to enable such evasion.

By filing an Implied Consent Petition we can protect your rights with respect to the plate impoundment. Call us at (612) 465-8581 for a free legal consultation.

THE POLICE TOOK MY CAR.

(3) Administrative Vehicle Forfeiture

Minnesota’s DWI law provides for vehicle forfeiture for a designated license revocation of designated offense, which is typically the third DWI violation within a ten-year period, though with one or more enhancing factors, a person’s second-time or even first-time violation might qualify as well.

DWI law defines “designated license revocation” as a license revocation or commercial license disqualification for an implied consent violation within ten years of two or more qualified impaired driving incidents. The term “designated offense” includes a DWI violation in the first or second degree or involving a person whose drivers is cancelled as inimical to public safety or subject to a B-Card (no use of alcohol or controlled substance) restrictions.

The law provides that the arresting officer may seize the vehicle and requires that the prosecuting authority serve notice to the owner(s) of the intent to forfeit. The forfeiture is conducted administratively, unless within 30 days the owner appeals the forfeiture action by filing for a judicial determination of the forfeiture.

A vehicle is subject to forfeiture under the law only if:

it was used in the commission of a designated offense and the driver was convicted of that offense or failed to appear at trial; or
it was used in conduct resulting in a designated license revocation and the driver either fails to seek administrative or judicial review of the revocation in a timely manner or the revocation is sustained upon review.

Other vehicles owned by the offender are not subject to forfeiture. As protection for an owner who is not the offender (“innocent owner”), the law states that a motor vehicle is subject to forfeiture only if the owner knew or should have known of the unlawful or intended use of the vehicle.

Following completion of the forfeiture, the arresting agency may keep the vehicle for its official use. However, the security interest or lease of the financial institution, if any, is protected, and the lien holder may choose to sell the vehicle at its own foreclosure sale or agree to a sale by the arresting agency. A proportionate share of the proceeds, after deduction of certain expenses, goes to the financial institution. The law provides similar protection to any innocent co-owner as well.

How do I get my vehicle back?

In order to protect your rights a Demand for Judicial Determination must be filed within 30 days of you receiving the Notice of Seizure with Intent to Forfeit. Failure to do, results in an automatic Administrative Forfeiture of your vehicle.

Call us at (612) 465-8581 for a free legal consultation.