Austin, Bastrop, Buda, Cedar Park, Georgetown, Pflugerville, Round Rock, San Antonio & South Texas DWI & DUI Criminal Defense Attorney

All 50 states and the District of Columbia have per se laws defining it as a crime to drive with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) at or above a proscribed level, currently 0.08 percent (0.08 g alcohol per 100 ml blood).

License suspension or revocation traditionally follows conviction for alcohol-impaired driving.  Under a procedure called administrative license suspension, licenses are taken before conviction when a driver fails or refuses to take a chemical test.  Because administrative license suspension laws are independent of criminal procedures and are invoked right after arrest, they've been found to be more effective than traditional post-conviction sanctions.  Administrative license suspension laws are in place in 41 states and the District of Columbia.

More than half of all U.S. states require DUI offenders to install ignition interlocks on their vehicles in order to drive during a license suspension and/or require interlocks for specified time periods before fully relicensing offenders. These interlock devices analyze a driver's breath and disable the ignition if the driver has been drinking. In 13 states (Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Hawaii, Illinois, Louisiana, Nebraska, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Utah, and Washington), such a restriction is applied to all offenders, including first time offenders. California applies a similar restriction to all offenders, but only in 4 counties. An additional 9 states apply the restriction to all offenders with high BACs (usually 0.15 or higher) and to repeat offenders, and 6 states apply the restriction only to repeat offenders. (Source: Insurance Institute For Highway Safety).

Laws in the remaining states do not require interlocks at all, though courts or DMVs in 18 states and the District of Columbia have the discretion to apply interlock requirements. Only 3 states (Alabama, South Dakota, and Vermont) have no interlock laws.

The Law on Texas DUI/DWI

As with other States, in Texas, a person is legally intoxicated and may be arrested and charged with DUI/DWI with a .08 BAC (blood or breath alcohol concentration). However, a person is also intoxicated if impaired due to alcohol or other drugs regardless of BAC. Whether you're the driver or the passenger, you can be fined up to $500 for having an open alcohol container in a vehicle.

Punishment for DWI varies depending on the number of convictions:

• 1st Offense

• A fine of up to $2,000
• Three days to 180 days in jail
• Loss of driver license up to a year
• Annual fee of $1,000 or $2,000 for three years to retain driver license

• 2nd Offense

• A fine of up to $4,000
• One month to a year in jail
• Loss of driver license up to two years
• Annual fee of $1,000, $1,500 or $2,000 for three years to retain driver license

Third, Fourth and subsequent offenses carry severe fines, penalties and jail time.  Contact a DWI/DUI criminal defense lawyer at the criminal practice group of the Lorenzana Law Firm, P.C. at (512) 338-0529 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting               (512) 338-0529         end_of_the_skype_highlighting in Austin, Round Rock, Cedar Park, Pflugerville, Georgetown, and surrounding cities and counties, to discuss your DWI or DUI offense case.

Texas Automatic License Revocation or ALR Process

The ALR law took effect January 1, 1995. ALR is a civil, administrative process unrelated to criminal court proceedings.  To contact one of our Texas Administrative attorneys and administrative defense lawyers, visit our sister page at www.TexasAdministrativeLawAttorney.com  or contact one of our Texas administrative defense lawyers at (512) 338-0529 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting               (512) 338-0529         end_of_the_skype_highlighting today!

How Texas ALR Works:

• A law enforcement officer determines that there is reasonable suspicion to stop a driver and probable cause to arrest the motorist for drunk driving.
• If the officer has reason to believe that the driver is impaired, a set of field sobriety tests is administered. If the driver performs poorly, the driver is arrested for DWI.
• Once at a police station or sheriff's office, the driver is asked to take a chemical test to measure his blood alcohol concentration (BAC) level. This is usually a breath test.
• The officer serves the offender with a notice that his driver license will be suspended if he or she refuses to take the test or fails it (registering a .08 BAC or greater).
• The officer confiscates the Texas driver license and issues a temporary driving permit.
• The offender has 15 days from the date that the suspension notice is received to request a hearing. If no hearing is requested, then the suspension goes into effect on the 40th day after notice was served (usually 40 days after arrest).
• The driver pays a $125 fee to reinstate the license after a period of suspension.
• The ALR process also applies to individuals arrested for boating while intoxicated (BWI) who refuse to take a chemical test.

Suspension Lengths:

The offender's license is suspended for failing the BAC test for:

• 90 days, if a first offender;

We serve the following States, Cities, Zip Codes and Counties

Texas, Austin TX 78731, Georgetown TX 78626, Cedar Park TX 78630, Westlake TX 78746, Pflugerville 78660, Bastrop TX 78602, San Antonio TX 78248, Corpus Christi TX 78401, Harlingen TX 78550, Houston TX 77024, Waco TX 76701, Killeen TX 76540, Alamo Heights TX 78209, Hill Country Village TX 78232, Lakeway TX 78734, Southlake TX 76092, Lago Vista TX 78645, Dallas TX 75225, Ft. Worth TX 76177, Del Rio TX 78847, Laredo TX 78040, Eagle Pass TX 78853, Brownsville TX 78520, Edinburg TX 78539, El Paso TX 79901, Giddings TX 78942, Goliad TX 77963, Gonzales TX 78629,Helotes TX 78023, Hewitt TX 76643, Hutto TX 78634, Liberty Hill TX 78642, Burnet TX 78611, Katy TX 77450, Kerrville TX 78028, Kyle TX 78640, La Grange TX 78945, Laguna Vista TX 78578, Lampasas TX 76550, Las Colinas TX 75062, League City TX 77573, Lockhart TX 78644, Hutto TX 78634, Lubbock TX 79401, Lufkin TX 75901, McAllen TX 78501, Midland TX 79701, Nacogdoches TX 75961, Fredericksburg TX 78624, New Braunfels TX 78130, Odessa TX 79760, Pearland TX 77581, Pharr TX 78577, Pleasanton TX 78064, Port Aransas TX 78373, Port Arthur TX 77640, Port Isabel TX 78578, Port Lavaca TX 77979, Poteet TX 78065, Rockdale TX 76567, Rockwall TX 75032, Round Rock TX 78664, San Angelo TX 76901, San Antonio TX 78259, Schertz TX 78109, Seguin TX 78155, Seagoville TX 75159, Shavano Park TX 78231, Shreveport TX 71101, South Padre Island TX 78597, Sugar Land TX 77478, Sulphur Springs TX 75482, Sweetwater TX 79556, Taylor TX 76574, Texarkana TX 75501, The Woodlands TX 77380, Tyler TX 75701, Universal City TX 78148, Uvalde TX 78801, Victoria TX 77901, Waco TX 76701, West Lake Hills TX 78746, Wichita Falls TX 76301, Woodlake TX 75865, Woodlands TX 77381, Westlake TX 76262, White Oak TX 75693, Zavalla TX 75980, Travis County, Williamson County, Hays County, Bell County, Bexar County, Anderson County, Bandera County, Baylor County, Bee County, Blanco County, Brazoria County, Brazos County, Briscoe County, Brooks County, Burleson County, Burnet County, Caldwell County, Cameron County, Collin County, Dallas County, Denton County, Ector County, Ellis County, El Paso County, Fort Bend County, Galveston County, Grayson County, Gregg County, Guadalupe County, Harris County, Hays County, Henderson County, Hidalgo County, Hunt County, Jefferson County, Johnson County, Kaufman County, Kerr County, Lamar County, Liberty County, Lubbock County, McLennan County, Matagorda County, Midland County, Montgomery County, Nueces County, Orange County, Parker County, Potter County, Randall County, Smith County, Tarrant County, Taylor County, Travis County, Val Verde County, Victoria County, Walker County, Webb County, Wichita County, Williamson County.