Many people who are facing DUI charges are experiencing the criminal justice system for the first time. For people inexperienced with criminal law, the procedures and terminology for a criminal case can be confusing, especially when you are pulled over a DUI.
Many of my clients experience this situation: they’ve been pulled over by the police and they may have been given paperwork talking about an ADOT administrative license suspension, they’re license may have even been confiscated by the police, but they were not given a court date or official criminal charges.
This occurs because in Arizona there is a difference between a DUI arrest, a DUI charge, and a DUI conviction. An arrest, a charge, and a conviction all have different consequences that you will need to know how to handle. Depending on where you are at in the process, an attorney can do different things to try to help you get a better outcome for your situation.
What is the Difference Between a DUI Charge and a Conviction?
If an officer pulls you over for suspicion of DUI and now you have a court date with a day and time to appear before a judge, then you have been charged (but not convicted) of a DUI. When you are charged, you still get to have your day in court to fight the DUI charges.
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You are only punished for a DUI in the criminal courts if you get convicted of a DUI, either after or a jury trial or through a plea of guilty. But you may face license and employment consequences immediately, even without a conviction.
Note: If you have been falsely charged with a DUI, most of the consequences from the charge itself can be combatted by an experienced DUI lawyer.
If You Were Arrested or Pulled Over For a DUI, But Don’t Have a Court Date
This is a common situation in Arizona. The police may pull you over, they ask you to perform field sobriety tests, and they perform a blood draw — but at the end of the encounter they don’t give you a traffic ticket and complaint with your charges or with a court date for you to attend. The police will often tell you in this situation to check your mail and that charges will be sent to you. This is what I call the pre-charging stage of the investigation. What is likely going on here is that the police have drawn your blood, but they need to send it back to their crime lab to be tested. Before they submit official DUI charges to the prosecutor’s office, they want to know the results of the blood work: what is known as the BAC.
Depending on the number the BAC comes back at (above a 0.08%, 0.15%, or 0.20%) the prosecutor can charge you with different levels of DUI. So they will wait for the blood work BEFORE they give you a court date. That is why the officer didn’t give you a court date on the night you were arrested.
How Long Do You Have to Wait to Get the Charges?
For a misdemeanor DUI, the State has 1 year from the date you were pulled over to complete the blood work and file charges against you. This is what is called the “statute of limitations.” For an Aggravated DUI, which is a felony, the State has 7 years.
So this means that you can be waiting a while, unfortunately, before you know definitively what will happen to your criminal charges. The State will sometimes get the blood work done quickly and file charges within a couple of months, but other times I’ve seen them take almost up into the 12-month mark to file charges. This is a frustrating situation because my clients will often get their hopes up thinking the State decided not to pursue charges, but then they get a piece of paper in the mail from the court, called a summons, telling them that they’ve been charged and need to appear in court.
Where it Starts: The Effect of a DUI Arrest by Itself (Even Without a Court Date)
When you are arrested with a DUI, even without being charged, you will likely have to deal with the license consequences.
If the police suspect that you were driving under the influence of alcohol, even if they don’t have the blood work back, they can serve you with an “admin per se suspension form.” This will say “Admin Per Se” at the top of the form and will also say “ADOT” at the top. The blank form will look something like this, but your actual form will be filled out by the officer:
If you get this form, you will have 30 days from the date of your arrest and then if you do nothing your license will be suspended. This is without any criminal charges or blood work — just the arrest. Now what can you do about this? Well, there is a process to put a stay on the automatic license suspension, but you have to act quickly. By requesting an administrative hearing with ADOT to challenge the admin per se suspension, a stay will be placed on that automatic license suspension. If this is done, then you can drive like normal until a hearing is held with ADOT.
Note: If you’ve been looking around online, you may find outdated information on a lot of websites (which makes it way into false information in AI results) that you have 15 days to request a hearing with ADOT. This is based on an old law that is no longer valid. The time window has changed, and you now have 30 days to request the hearing before your license gets suspended.
For DUI clients I have that are in your position and haven’t been charged but were given an admin per se suspension form, requesting a hearing is usually the right move. This will keep you out on the road, driving like normal, while I figure out what is going on with your case and waiting for the blood work to come back. If the blood work is below a 0.08% then that is a basis to challenge the license suspension at a hearing. I’ve worked with clients where I’ve been able to avoid any suspension on their license at all after they’ve been arrested.
Even if the blood work eventually comes back above a 0.08% and you are facing a license suspension, there are things that can often be done to try to minimize the impact on you. One of those things is looking into getting a restricted license. ADOT offers work restricted licenses which allow you to drive to and from work, but they also now offer Special Ignition Interlock Restricted Drivers Licenses (called SIIRDLs) which allow you to drive anywhere during the suspension period. But to get that SIIRDL you have to do some leg-work beforehand, which you can get a jump on during the time that the stay has been placed on the license suspension. This includes doing alcohol screening and taking the recommended alcohol education classes, which can range from 16 hours to over 60 hours, usually depending on how high your BAC was. This can obviously take time to get done, so I’ll often recommend that my clients complete these classes while we are waiting for the ADOT hearing to be held.
You may also face a disciplinary investigation as part of your job or school. If you are a licensed professional in Arizona, the Board that oversees your profession may also conduct their own investigation into the charges.
The Next Step: The Effect of a DUI Charge on Your Record
When the police get the blood work back, and if it above a 0.08%, they will submit that information to the appropriate prosecutor’s office (which prosecutor agency receives the information will depend on the location you were arrested), and then the prosecutor will submit charges against you. This is what sets off the criminal court case. You will receive a date for the hearing on the paperwork and be told which court you need to appear at.
Just because you have been charged with a DUI does not mean that you will be convicted of the DUI. Many times, we can get DUI charges reduced or dismissed, so a client will wind up being convicted of a lesser offense or no crime at all. However, a charge itself can still trigger consequences that you will need to face.
Some Professional Reporting Requirements for a DUI Charge
Licensing boards for certain professions may also impose automatic reporting requirements whenever a person is arrested for a DUI. If you belong to a profession where you need to maintain a professional license, then you should speak with a DUI lawyer to see if you may be required to report your charges with your professional board.
For example, the Federal Aviation Administration requires pilots to inform the FAA in writing 60 days after an administrative suspension of their driving privileges. As discussed above, an admin per se suspension of a person’s driving privileges can occur even without a criminal conviction for a DUI.
University Disciplinary Boards
If you are a college student, a DUI arrest can also lead to an investigation by your university. For example, DUIs are considered a violation of ASU’s Student Code of Conduct. It is not always the case that a police officer will report a DUI arrest to your university. But Tempe police officers may report criminal conduct they suspect ASU students to have committed to the school.
Disciplinary action by the university can range from a warning to suspension or expulsion. The more extreme punishments are unlikely for a first-time offender, but a disciplinary hearing is something that a student should take incredibly seriously. And dealing with these types of hearings can be difficult. On the one hand, the hearings usually take place prior to a resolution of your criminal case, so it may be in your interest to exercise your 5th Amendment right to remain silent. But on the other hand, not defending yourself before a disciplinary board will often have the consequence of the board only hearing the officer’s side of the story, which can result in the board deciding to take disciplinary action.
There is no one-size-fits-all approach for how to handle a situation where a DUI charge leads to a disciplinary hearing. A defense attorney experienced with Tempe’s court process and ASU’s disciplinary procedures can help you through this process.
Facing Criminal Charges in Arizona?
Discuss your legal options with an attorney at Salwin Law Group
or, give us a ring at (480) 702-1789.
The Effect of a DUI Conviction
A DUI conviction has far greater consequences than a mere DUI arrest in the criminal system. An arrest merely shows that a police officer believed he had a probable cause (i.e., the officer thought it was “more likely than not” that you committed a crime). The legal standard for a conviction is “beyond a reasonable doubt.” Because the US justice system places a high burden on the state to convict a person of a DUI, an arrest does not automatically mean you are guilty or lead to a conviction.
If you are convicted, however, any DUI charge in Arizona comes with a bevy of fines as well as mandatory minimum jail time. You may have to report the conviction to a licensing board if you are a professional. It will also lead to even further consequences for your Arizona driver’s license. And finally, it will appear permanently as a conviction on your criminal record
Only a Conviction Results in Fines and Jail Time
The only way the state can put you in jail for a DUI is if they secure a conviction. A DUI conviction can be put on your record as the result of either a guilty verdict at a criminal trial or through a plea of guilty to the court.
Depending on the type of DUI (which is determined by the BAC in your system at the time of driving) and whether this is your first or second DUI offense, the amount of jail time you can be facing can be as little as 1 day to as much as 6 months in jail.
Minimum fines and fees can range from $1250 to $3750.
If you have been charged with a higher-level DUI, this does not mean that you will be convicted of the highest crime charged. There are several defenses to DUI which an attorney can use to fight for an acquittal at trial or to use to negotiate lower charges (or even a complete dismissal) with a prosecutor.
Out-of-State DUI Concerns?
While this page focuses on DUI arrests in Arizona, similar legal issues can arise in other states. If you were arrested for DUI in another state and haven’t been formally charged, it’s still important to speak with a local attorney who understands the process and can help protect your rights.
For example, if you’re dealing with a DUI in Colorado, Prager Law provides experienced DUI defense in Denver and can guide you through what to expect after an arrest — even if charges haven’t yet been filed.
Additional License Consequences of a DUI Conviction
A DUI conviction will have additional consequences with your Arizona driver’s license. DUI convictions result in 8 points on your driver’s license, which will trigger a requirement for you to take traffic survival school (or which would result in a suspension of your license if you have accumulated additional points previously).
A DUI conviction for alcohol (as opposed to a drug-related DUI), will also lead to MVD requiring you to install an ignition interlock device (IID) on your car for at least 1 year. In order to start your car, you will be required to blow into the IID. If the device detects alcohol on your breath, then your car won’t start. Even if you get your license back, you won’t legally be able to drive any car that is not equipped with an ignition interlock device.
Note: These license consequences are in addition to the admin per se license suspension that is discussed above.
More Expansive Report Requirements to Professional Boards
While some licensing organizations require you report a DUI charge, a much larger number require you to report an actual conviction. This can include real estate agents, who do not have a duty to report a DUI charge, but must report a DUI conviction.
Do You Need to Speak with a DUI Defense Lawyer?
If you or someone you love is facing DUI charges, it’s critical to speak with an experienced defense attorney as soon as possible. At Salwin Law Group, we represent clients across the Phoenix metro area, including Scottsdale, Phoenix, Mesa, Gilbert, Chandler, Glendale, and Surprise.
Stewart Salwin is a former prosecutor who now dedicates his practice to defending people accused of DUI and other criminal charges. He understands how to challenge the evidence against you and build a strong defense. Call Salwin Law Group today at (480) 702-1789 or contact us online for a free consultation.
Stewart Salwin
Stewart Salwin is the founder and lead attorney at Salwin Law Group, a Scottsdale criminal defense law firm based in the greater Phoenix area. His practice is primarily dedicated DUI-defense work. He is a graduate of Georgetown University and Harvard Law School, where he was taught criminal law by world-renowned defense attorneys.
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