Will A DWI Suspend My License? Pt. 1

Posted on by lmrlawoffice

Other than possibly sending you to jail, one of the biggest consequences of a DWI is that it can revoke your driver’s license.

License revocations caused by a DWI can divided into two categories:

  1. The kind of license revocations you get before being convicted of DWI, and
  2. The kind of license revocation you get after being convicted of DWI.

In the interest of safe driving, the law allows your license to be revoked even if you’re just charged with DWI – regardless of whether you actually end up getting convicted of DWI.

This blog post will cover how you license gets revoked before you’re ever convicted of DWI.

For an explanation of what happens to your license in the event you are found guilty of DWI, see the blog post on this web site called “Will A DWI Suspend My License? Pt. 2.”

License Revocations Before Being Convicted of DWI:

By simply being charged with a DWI the law says your driver’s license can be revoked – before you even go to court for the first time on your DWI charge!

There are actually 2 ways for your license to be revoked before you ever get convicted of DWI.  Those 2 different ways are –

(1) By what’s called a Civil Revocation

If you’re arrested for DWI, in most cases the police officer will take you to the local jail where you’ll be asked to provide a breath sample (“blow”) into the breathalyzer machine.

If you refuse to blow into the breathalyzer

or

do blow into the breathalyzer and blow at least a 0.08

or

do blow into the breathalyzer and blow at least a 0.04 after driving a commercial motor vehicle

or

do blow into the breathalyzer and have ANY amount of alcohol and you’re under 21 years old

then in most cases your driver’s license will be revoked for 30 days from the date of your arrest assuming you hand over your license to the magistrate at the jail.  In some situations your driver’s license will be revoked for 45 days.

(2) By the NC DMV

Once again, if you’re arrested for DWI, in most cases the police officer will take you to the local jail where you’ll be asked to provide a breath sample (“blow”) into the breathalyzer machine.

If you refuse to blow into the breathalyzer

then in most cases your driver’s license will be revoked for 12 months by the NC DMV.

 

The good news is that if your driver’s license does get revoked there are ways to get the right to drive despite not having your license.  Using a Limited Driving Privilege, or LDP, you would have the ability to drive your car between certain hours of the day for running errands, going to work, going to school and other doing other important tasks during the period your license is revoked.

For more on Limited Driving Privileges see the blog post on this web site titled “What Is A Limited Driving Privilege?”.

If you’ve been charged with DWI and have questions similar to these the best thing you can do is hire a former DWI prosecutor.  As a former DWI prosecutor I know the answers to your questions and the inside legal knowledge to help you win your case.  I’m available 24 hours a day/365 days a year to take your call.  My number is (919) 886-7506.