A DUI is the crime of driving your vehicle while you are drunk or while impaired by drugs. You can be arrested for a Scottsdale DUI if you are convicted. Typically, this is a misdemeanor unless there are aggravating circumstances involved (e.g. having a minor child in the car, injuring or killing another person, having prior DUI convictions).

What Constitutes a Scottsdale DUI

Committing a DUI in Scottsdale has major implications on your life since this is a no-tolerance state. This means that you can be arrested for a Scottsdale DUI if you have a blood alcohol level (BAC) of 0.08%. When you are arrested you will be charged with one of three DUI offenses – depending on your BAC and other factors (e.g. if you had minors in the vehicle, if you harmed anyone or any property). The more serious your DUI is, the more you will pay. With this in mind, here is a look at the penalties under state law:

  • A standard DUI, BAC 0.08% and your first offense will result in you going to jail for 10 days; paying fines of about $1,500, plus jail costs and $80 monitoring fee; undergoing screening and counseling; facing a 90-day suspension or one-year revocation of your driver’s license; and having an interlock device installed on your vehicle for 12 months.
  • A standard DUI, BAC 0.08%, and your second offense will result in you going to jail for 90 days – you will be eligible for home detention after spending 6 days in jail; paying about $3,500 in fines, plus jail/home detention costs and an $80 monitoring fee; undergoing screening and counseling; having your driver’s license revoked for one year; having an interlock device installed on your vehicle for 12 months; and being required to do 30 hours of community service.
  • An extreme DUI, BAC 0.15%, and your first offense will result in you going to jail for 30 days – being eligible for home detention after two days; paying fines of about $2,780, plus jail/home detention costs and an $80 monitoring fee; undergoing screening and counseling; having your license suspended for 90 days; and having an interlock device installed on your vehicle for 12 months.
  • An extreme DUI, BAC 0.15%, and your second offense will result in you going to jail for 120 days – you are eligible for home detention after 24 days; paying about $3,740 in fines plus jail/home detention costs and an $80 monitoring fee; undergoing screening and counseling; having your driver’s license suspended for one year; having an interlock device installed on your vehicle for 12 months; and doing 30 hours of community service.
  • A super extreme DUI, BAC 0.20%, and your first offense will result in you going to jail for 45 days – you are eligible for home detention after three days; paying fines of about $3,240, plus jail/home detention costs and an $80 monitoring fee; undergoing screening and counseling; having your driver’s license suspended for 90 days; and having an interlock device installed in your car for 18 months.
  • A super extreme DUI, 0.20%, your second offense will result in you going to jail for 180 days – you are eligible for home detention after 36 days; paying fines of about $4,650, plus jail/home detention costs and an $80 monitoring fee; undergoing screening and counseling; facing a one-year revocation of your driver’s license; having an interlock device installed on your vehicle for 24 months; and doing 30 months of community service.

How a DUI Screening can Help You

When convicted of a DUI in Scottsdale you will want to undergo an alcohol screening. This is a 15 – 30 minute one on one interview with an alcohol counselor. They will ask you about your drinking habits, then recommend a treatment plan which you are not obligated to follow unless you are convicted of DUI. Typically, the recommendation is 16 hours for your first offense and 36 – 72 hours if you have had a multiple, extreme, super extreme or aggravated DUI.

Completing or scheduling this before your court date will reduce your standard 90-day license suspension to 30 days of no driving and 60 days of restricted driving. Most judges will also reduce your jail time if you complete this program.

Getting Help for Your Arizona DUI

When you get charged with a DUI in Scottsdale, it is a scary thing that you do not want to face alone. Fortunately, you do not have to. At Alcohol Screening Scottsdale, we have helped many people, just like yourself, overcome the hurdles being charged with a DUI bring their way. There are two main ways in which we can do this.

Sometimes you will have the opportunity to enter a plea bargain because trials are expensive and take up docket space when there is no guarantee the state will win. While you may be able to accomplish a plea bargain without legal assistance, having an experienced DUI attorney who understands how to negotiate with the prosecution because they have a relationship with them will make sure you get the best deal. Typically, you would plead to reckless driving, but sometimes you must acknowledge that you were impaired while doing so. This will still carry a lighter sentence than DUI.

There are some circumstances in which you will have the best chance of bargaining down your DUI sentence in exchange for a guilty plea. Ultimately, the prosecutor’s goal is to get you to plead guilty – something for which they are willing to offer more lenient sentencing, especially in terms of jail time. You may even be able to negotiate away random drug testing throughout probation if you are caught using drugs while driving. This is to their benefit because it means they will not need to spend a lot of time or money wrapped up in a lengthy trial that may not get them the results they want anyway. Of course, you must be willing to give and take here. All this goes much smoother when handled by an attorney, especially if this is your first offense and there are no injuries involved.

 

Alcohol Screening Scottsdale is here to help you. Give us a call today at (602) 682-7017.

We’re on your side.