First Time DWI in Houston

Penalties for a First Time DWI in Houston

Have you been arrested for driving while intoxicated? The courts in our area take drinking and driving seriously, and you may receive a stiff penalty which can have a severe impact on your life. You need dedicated legal representation to help you resolve this situation in your favor, either to have the charges dropped or reduced, or to secure a full acquittal. A Houston DWI defense lawyer with experience as the Chief Prosecutor of the Harris County District Attorneys' Office can fight to help you avoid conviction. T he Martinez Law Firm is rated 10/10 on Avvo.com, and Mr. Martinez has been named as "Houston Top Lawyer" by H Texas magazine for three years in a row. We work tirelessly to achieve results for our clients.

A first-time DWI is a class B misdemeanor, punishable by between three days and three months in county jail. You may additionally be fined as much as $2,000, and you can lose your driver's license for up to a year. You will also be required to pay an annual driver's license surcharge of $1,000 for the next three years, as well as providing proof of SR-22 high risk insurance coverage, which costs significantly more than normal auto insurance. The crime is increased to a class A misdemeanor when the driver's blood alcohol content is above .15%, and in this scenario you could spend up to a year in jail and be fined $4,000.

Houston DWI Defense Attorney

To prove that you are guilty of drinking and driving, the prosecutor will have to prove that you either had a BAC above .08% or that you had lost the normal use of your physical or mental faculties. The field sobriety tests and breath & blood tests used by police to prove that a driver has committed DWI are notoriously faulty, and there is also a possibility that the evidence could be thrown out on the grounds that your Constitutional rights were violated in an unlawful traffic stop. Nobody intends to commit DWI, and you deserve to have someone on your side to defend your rights.

Contact a Houston DWI defense attorney if you have been arrested for drinking and driving and want to preserve your license and avoid a criminal record.