Do You Get Arrested for a DUI?
Law enforcement officers have the authority to arrest you for a DUI charge.
Depending on your circumstances, the police may instead issue you a summons or request a warrant for your arrest.
If you are facing a DUI charge, you need a tough, skilled, and experienced DUI defense attorney by your side through each step of the process.
The attorneys at Andrew Flusche, Attorney at Law, PLC, regularly appear in courts in and around the Fredericksburg and Northern Virginia area, fighting traffic cases and DUI charges.
We can fight for your license, job, freedom, and insurance rates so your DUI charge doesn’t ruin your life. Contact us today.
What Happens After DUI Arrest?
What happens after a DUI arrest? Virginia law gives police officers the authority to arrest you without a warrant in certain circumstances.
Under Virginia’s law of arrest, a police officer can arrest you for DUI within three hours of the alleged offense if the police have probable cause.
For example, the police may have probable cause to arrest you if you perform poorly on field sobriety tests.
If you get arrest for a DUI, the officers will normally take you for a chemical test, such as the breathalyzer (officially known as the “Intoxilyzer EC / IR II”), to determine the amount of alcohol or other substances in your body.
Under Virginia’s implied consent law, you consent to submit to these tests as a condition of driving on Virginia roads.
Next, you will appear before a magistrate. The officers who arrested you will tell the magistrate their version of the events. The magistrate will decide whether to release you on bail and set a date for your arraignment.
For a DUI, a personal recognizance bond, which doesn’t require you to pay any money for release, is appropriate in many circumstances.
In other cases, a judge may require you to post a nominal bail amount. If you post the bail amount, you’ll be released while your charges are pending.
You must go to court for your arraignment as specified by the magistrate. At your arraignment, the court will formally inform you of your charges and ask what you plan to do about a lawyer. The judge could set a court date for trial at this time.
It is extremely important that you get representation before you go to court and decide on a plea. Make sure you call our office as soon as possible after your arrest.
You need experienced counsel to be there with you, advise you on your legal strategy, and speak for you in court.
Can You Get a DUI Without Being Arrested?
Can you get a DUI without being arrested? The short answer is yes, but it’s rare. Most DUI arrests happen at the scene, like at a roadside traffic stop or checkpoint.
Virginia law also allows the police to arrest you at the hospital for a DUI if you need treatment after an accident.
In other circumstances, the police may go to a magistrate to get an arrest warrant if they cannot locate you or claim you fled from the scene of the accident.
The police may also issue you a summons requiring you to go to court rather than take you into custody. People often believe that a DUI summons is a ticket.
However, a summons is the equivalent of an arrest. For example, the police may choose to issue you a summons rather than take you into custody if you are going to be in the hospital for a while.
You should call us immediately if you receive a summons to appear in court or find out you have a DUI arrest warrant. We will arrange to be with you in court and fight to protect your rights.
Recent Case Result: Stafford DWI Dismissed After Police Invaded Curtilage
(Cases depend upon unique facts. Past cases do not guarantee future outcomes.)
THE STORY:
When Sally (name changed for privacy) called us for her Stafford DWI, the ultimate winning issue wasn’t readily apparent. Sometimes the initial client consult reveals major issues with the Commonwealth’s case, but often you can’t see what they did wrong until you watch the body camera videos and review all the discovery materials.
In Sally’s case, the police came to her house after citizen reports of an alleged drunk driver. The body camera videos revealed that the police knocked on her front door for several minutes with no response.
But then they walked around to the sides of the house, all the way to the back fence. At that point, they could see a subject on the back deck.
We immediately knew this was a potential legal issue: the police cannot enter your “curtilage” (i.e. the immediate area surrounding your house) without a search warrant or some exception to the warrant rule. In Sally’s case, the police were allowed to knock on the front door. But once they went around to the back fence, they exceeded their lawful boundaries.
We fought Sally’s case through two separate courts – first winning a motion to suppress in General District Court and then later winning the same argument again in Circuit Court. The judge suppressed most of the Commonwealth’s evidence due to the police violating Sally’s Fourth Amendment right to be free from unreasonable searches.
CASE OUTCOME:
Ultimately, the judge dismissed Sally’s Stafford DWI charge, finding her NOT guilty. The Commonwealth could not prove any crime had occurred.
Can You Drive After a DUI Arrest?
Can you drive after a DUI arrest? Whether you can drive after a DUI arrest depends on your circumstances. If you are charged with a DUI, Virginia requires an automatic pre-trial license suspension.
For a first offense, this is just a suspension for seven days; however, for a second offense, your license is suspended for sixty days simply by virtue of being charged with DUI.
If you refuse to take a breathalyzer or blood test after your arrest and are convicted of “refusal,” your driver’s license will be suspended for a year.
If it’s your first offense, you may petition the court for a restricted driver’s license 30 days after your license is suspended.
After a DUI conviction, the court must suspend your driver’s license for one year. You should be aware that the administrative license loss for refusal and the DUI suspension will run consecutively.
This means you could have a suspended license for two years.
Keep in mind that the penalties increase significantly if you have prior DUI convictions. If you are convicted of a 2nd offense DWI, you will suffer a three-year license suspension.
Need More Answers About Your DUI Arrest?
At Andrew Flusche, Attorney at Law, PLC, the skilled traffic and DUI attorneys can answer your Virginia DUI-related questions, such as, Do you get arrested for a DUI? You should not face the criminal process alone.
We work hard to investigate your case and plan the best legal strategy to avoid the harshest consequences. Call our office anytime at 540-318-5824 for help. We are here to protect your future.