- July 13, 2016 |
- Category: DUI and Courtroom Process
All DUI, OVI, drinking and driving charges in Ohio have serious consequences. However, most Ohio drivers aren’t aware that even a first time DUI conviction carries mandatory jail time or in-patient treatment. No exceptions. In my approximate fifteen years as an attorney, I don’t believe I’ve ever seen a judge go below a mandatory minimum penalty in a DUI/OVI conviction, even when the driver is facing a first-time DUI offense. Why is that? it’s quite simple really. Ohio judges do not have the discretion to go below the mandatory minimum sentences in cases where an Ohio driver is convicted of DUI/OVI/drinking and driving. If an Ohio judge doesn’t impose jail time or in-patient treatment for a DUI conviction, she would be breaking the law.
The DUI statute in Ohio, Revised Code section 4511.19 states: If the sentence is being imposed for a DUI violation….the defendant shall be sentenced to a mandatory jail term of three consecutive days. As used in this division, three consecutive days means seventy-two consecutive hours. The court may sentence an offender to both an intervention program and a jail term. The court may impose a jail term in addition to the three-day mandatory jail term or intervention program. However, in no case shall the cumulative jail term imposed for the offense exceed six months.”
If you read that provision of the Ohio Revised Code carefully, two things should stand out: (1) An Ohio DUI carries a mandatory minimum of three days in jail, even for a first time DUI offense; and (2) Ohio judges are not required to give a first time DUI offender a minimum three days, rather, the judge can give a first time offender up to six months. That’s right-six months in jail. It doesn’t matter if the first time DUI offense is committed by a college student, an educator or a stay-at-home dad with full-time child care responsibilities. An Ohio judge has the legal authority to give a first-time offender anywhere from three days up to six months in jail. In addition to jail time, a first time DUI conviction in Ohio carries the following potential penalties: (a) a fine in the range of $375-$1075 plus other financial sanctions including court costs, costs of the prosecution, probationary charges and license reinstatement fees; (b) mandatory Ohio driver’s license suspension in the range of six months up to three years; (c) probation with court-ordered drug and alcohol treatment; (d) special Ohio DUI license plates; and (e) installation of an ignition interlock device on your car.
These potential penalties are extremely intimidating for first time DUI offenders with little experience in Ohio’s courts. So….how do the best DUI lawyers in Ohio keep their clients who have a first time DUI offense from going to jail? As an experienced Ohio DUI defense lawyer, I can tell you there are many routes to take–too many to list in single blog post. A good lawyer will always look for ways to get the DUI/OVI case dismissed. If police officers make a serious mistake in the traffic stop or subsequent DUI investigation, an experienced DUI lawyer can get the case dismissed. Such mistakes may include: (a) pulling over/stopping an Ohio driver without reasonable suspicion that a traffic offense occurred; (b) expanding a routine traffic stop to a DUI investigation without probable cause that the first time DUI offender was drinking alcohol; or (c) incorrectly administering the roadside field sobriety testing. These are just a few examples but there are many others. Top Ohio DUI lawyers review many items when reviewing a case for dismissal.
After reviewing all the facts of the case, if there are no valid reasons for a dismissal, most experienced DUI lawyers approach the prosecuting attorney to see if he will amend or reduce the first-time DUI charge. Keep in mind that mandatory DUI penalties set forth above only apply to Ohio drivers convicted of DUI. That means if your DUI lawyer can get the case amended to a Reckless Operation or Physical Control offense, there is no mandatory jail time, in-patient treatment or driver’s license suspension. Warning: Even if your DUI lawyer gets the charges reduced to a different offense, that doesn’t mean the judge won’t still give you jail time, in-patient treatment or a driver’s license suspension. It simply means that those penalties are not mandatory. Your DUI lawyer’s next task is convincing the judge to give you a reasonable penalty that DOES NOT include the more serious components of a DUI first time offense.
If you have an Ohio DUI case, especially a DUI first offense, you should consider talking to a top Ohio DUI lawyer to see if he can get the case dismissed or reduced to a lesser offense. Remember that the penalties on these pages only apply to drivers who are convicted of a first offense DUI/OVI in Ohio. An experienced Ohio DUI lawyer may be able to prevent that from happening.
