DWI Lawyer in Lindale, TX

Texas DWI Charges

Whoever you hire to represent you, it is imperative that you hire a lawyer experienced in defending intoxicated related offenses. Experience in handling DWI cases is essential to obtaining the best possible outcome in your case.

A DWI conviction can cost thousands of dollars in fines and fees, result in probation or incarceration, but can also result in consequences, affecting things such as:

• Your ability to drive
• Your ability to secure car insurance
• Hold a job
• Find employment in some industries
• Can affect child custody matters

The severity of the DWI charge in a given case will vary depending on several factors, including:

• Are there prior DWI convictions or deferred adjudication probations?
• Was Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) over 0.15? If so, how much?
• Was there an open container of alcohol in the car?
• Was there an accident, and was anyone injured?
• Were there any children under the age of 15 in the vehicle?
• Your criminal history, if any?

DWI Attorney in Lindale, TX

There are many areas that lawyers defending DWI cases should carefully examine:

• Did the officer have probable cause to request that you perform the Standardized Field Sobriety Tests?
• Did the officer have a reasonable suspicion that a traffic violation or crime had occurred in order to stop your vehicle?
• Did the officer follow the requirements of reading and providing you with the DIC 24 before you voluntarily submitted to a blood or breath test?
• Is the warrant valid or challengeable if the officer secured a warrant for your blood?
• Was there a 15-minute observation period before the breath test was administered?
• Was there actually a refusal to submit to the taking of a breath or blood sample before the officer obtained the warrant?
• Did the officer correctly follow NHTSA standards, and did the officer demonstrate and administer the 9-step walk and turn, Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus test, and the one-legged stand correctly?
• Our DWI Attorney will look at the TCOLE records of the officer and what training and certifications they have or don't have in the administration of the SFST.

It is important to hire the most experienced DWI attorney in Lindale, TX that you can afford. You need a lawyer who understands the complexities of DWI cases and who will examine all the evidence to build a case to determine the best possible defense going forward in your case.

Is DWI a Misdemeanor in Texas?

In Texas, a DWI is a Class B Misdemeanor, which is punishable by up to 180 days in jail and a fine not to exceed $2,000.00, if you do not have a prior DWI conviction or deferred probation and the BAC is under .15.

A second DWI in Texas, or a first DWI with a BAC of 0.15 or greater, is a Class A Misdemeanor. Punishment is up to one year in jail and a fine not to exceed $4,000.00.

Can I get Deferred Adjudication Probation?

As of September 1st, 2019, if it is your first DWI arrest, and you have a BAC of less than .15, you might qualify to complete Deferred Adjudication probation. If you receive and complete a DWI deferred adjudication probation, you will not have a DWI conviction on your record and may qualify for an Order of Non-Disclosure. However, even a completed DWI deferred adjudication probation can be used to enhance another DWI case, if you are arrested in the future.

If you are arrested for DWI, contact our offices immediately and let us get to work representing you on your case.

LICENSE SUSPENSION HEARING

The best advice we can give you if you are arrested for DWI, is to contact a DWI attorney immediately. You only have 15 days from the date of arrest to request an ALR hearing. If you do not request the Administrative License Revocation Hearing within 15 days, your license will automatically be suspended.

ALR hearings are civil hearings separate and apart from your criminal DWI case. The resolution of your ALR hearing does not necessarily affect your criminal case, and vice versa. Hearings are conducted with a Texas ALR Judge and a lawyer for the Department of Public Safety (DPS). At your hearing, it will be determined if your license will be suspended, or if the suspension will be denied. The only issue at the hearing is whether the Texas Department of Public Safety proved, by a preponderance of the evidence, the elements as set out in section 524.035 of the Texas Transportation Code.

If you are arrested for DWI in Lindale, contact an experienced lawyer immediately to protect your rights and challenge the suspension of your license.

FELONY DWI IN TEXAS

When does a DWI become a felony?

A DWI can be indicted as a felony when an individual already has two prior DWI convictions, which can also include a prior deferred adjudication probation on a misdemeanor DWI. It does not matter how long ago the previous convictions occurred. It does not matter when the prior DWI convictions occurred, or if they occurred in another County or State. The only exception is if you were convicted before January 1, 1984, and successfully completed a probated sentence. 

A third-degree felony DWI is punishable by no less than 2 or no more than 10 years in prison and a fine not exceeding $10,000.00.

If your felony DWI is tried before a jury, the prosecutor is allowed by law to tell the jury that you have been convicted of DWI in the guilt-innocence stage of trial.

The prosecutors must prove Beyond a Reasonable doubt that you are the same person who was previously convicted, but merely hearing that information can be very prejudicial to a defendant's presumption of innocence.

As a condition of a DWI third degree felony conviction, you are required to serve a 10-day jail sentence if you receive a probated sentence.

INTOXICATED ASSAULT

When an accident occurs and someone suffers serious bodily injury due to another person operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated, prosecutors can charge the driver with intoxicated assault. The punishment for intoxicated assault is not less than 2, nor more than 10, years in prison and a fine not to exceed $10,000.00.

If the jury believes that the vehicle driven by the intoxicated person was used as a "deadly weapon," the defendant would have to serve one-half of the prison sentence assessed before they were eligible for parole.

If you do receive a probated sentence, you will have to serve 30 days in jail as a condition of the probation.

DWI WITH CHILD PASSENGER

DWI with a child passenger occurs when a person operates a motor vehicle while intoxicated and there is a passenger under the age of 15.

If convicted, you are looking at not less than 180 days, nor more than 2 years, in a State Jail Facility (prison). You may also receive a fine not to exceed $10,000.00. Additionally, your driver's license will be suspended for at least 90 days and up to 2 years.

As a condition of the bond, the Smith County Court may require the installation of an ignition interlock device on any car you operate. The court can also require random drug and alcohol testing while on bond.