first time dwi. . .texas

[rostam]

Texas. . . i have never been arrested for anything in my life. . .i made a dulm mistake and got a dwi. . .first effence. . . .i did take the breath test and got a .12. . . .what should i do. . . .what kind of an offence is this. . . and what should i expect? what do i do? please help. .

 

[CavemanLawyer]

A first offense DWI is a class B misdemeanor. The range of punishment is anything up to six months in jail and/or a $2000 fine or you can receive a year probation. For first time offenders, a common punishment for a DWI is one year probation with a fine, suspension of your driver's license for one year, and possibly a small amount of jail time as a condition of probation. For any DWI conviction, DPS also tacks on a hefty surcharge of $1000 a year for three years. Your breath test is not high enough to qualify you for mandatory interlock (must blow in tube before vehicle will start) but the state can always make it a condition of your probation.

There is no deferred adjudication for DWI's in Texas and there is no kind of expunction or sealing of convictions in Texas so... if convicted it will remain on your criminal history for life.

What you need to do is hire an attorney if you can afford one or request a court appointed attorney if you cannot. Have your attorney investigate the taking of the breath sample to make sure all laws and procedures were followed. If this was not done it may be possible to suppress the breath test results which will obviously help your case. You need to get an attorney quickly because you only have so many days to request an ALR hearing with DPS to avoid their suspension of your license for blowing above a .08.