Being charged with a DUI case in the state of Arizona is not very simple. In fact, the DUI penalty that may be charged to you varies depending on the severity of your case. But before you deal with your DUI case, you have to be informed of your rights first by hiring an experienced attorney and letting him help you throughout the process.
Your attorney will also help you determine what type of DUI or DWI case you are facing. The most minor case is the first DUI offense, in which the offender possesses slightly impaired faculties and a blood alcohol content of .08 or more. The penalty for this type of offense is a minimum of 10 days in jail. However, 9 days can be suspended if the offender subjects himself to an alcohol treatment and evaluation program. Aside from jail time, the offender will also have to pay around $1500 fine, plus his license can also be suspended for 90 days. Probation can also be ordered by the court, and this can last up to five years.
Once you commit your second regular DUI offense within 84 months of your first DUI offense, your jail time will increase up to 90 days, 60 days of which can be suspended if you subject yourself to an alcohol treatment and evaluation program. The fines and fees that you will have to pay will go up to $3400, excluding your jail costs. Your license can be confiscated for a year, plus you will also be sentenced with community service for at least 30 hours. You will also be under probation for five years.
If you are driving with a blood alcohol content or BAC of 0.15 or more, you will be punished based on the guidelines for extreme DUI cases. In the first conviction, you will be sentenced to 30 days in jail, fines and fees amounting up to $2700, driver’s license suspension for 90 days, and probation for five years. For your second extreme DUI offense, you will spend 120 days in jail, $3700 fines and fees including jail costs, license revocation for one year, probation for five years, and a minimum of 30 hours of community service.
Having a .200 or more BAC while driving will result to a super extreme case of DUI. You will be sentenced to a minimum of 45 days in jail, plus $3200 total of fees and fines without the jail costs. Your license will also be revoked for a year, and you will be under probation for five years. If you commit the same mistake for the second time, you will spend 180 days behind bars, with fees totaling up to $4500, again without the jail costs. Your license will be revoked for one year, you will be under probation for five years, and you have to render community service for a minimum of 30 hours.
A felony DUI can be committed by either having a child under 15 inside your vehicle or driving while your license is canceled, suspended, or revoked. Having three or more Phoenix DUI cases within 84 months also qualifies you for a felony DUI. In case of a felony DUI, remember that you may be able to lighten your Arizona DUI case by hiring a competent lawyer to defend you.
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A study conducted by ‘Car and Driver’ shows that texting while driving is significantly more dangerous than driving under the influence of alcohol drugs. Drivers texting messages are 3-4 times slower than drunk drivers to apply brakes to avoid a collision.