Driving Under the Influence DUI charges are a common concern in Florida. The state prosecutes thousands of people annually for driving after drinking. Some people get arrested at sobriety checkpoints where police departments screen hundreds of people for signs of intoxication.
Other people get arrested because police officers specifically pull them over due to their bad driving. Some drivers might get arrested for a suspected DUI offense after a car crash. Most people accused of criminal activity don’t know what to expect when they take their cases to court.
People sometimes plead guilty because they assume that a first offense carries minimal consequences. However, Florida imposes several mandatory penalties for DUI convictions. The loss of a driver’s license is a serious concern for someone facing DUI charges. Is a license revocation always necessary after a first DUI charge?
The sentence imposed must comply with state law
People who cooperate with the courts by pleading guilty often expect lenient treatment. Others may anticipate fewer penalties because they have never broken the law before. Misconceptions about the criminal justice process can lead to people making serious mistakes when facing criminal charges.
Some terms of a defendant’s sentence are at the discretion of a judge. The legal professional hearing the case could extend leniency in some scenarios or might impose the harshest penalties possible in others. They still have to comply with state law regarding the sentence that they impose.
A driver’s license suspension is a mandatory penalty for a first DUI charge in Florida. As a general rule, license revocation is mandatory after a DUI charge in Florida. Someone accused of a first DUI offense where no one got hurt could face between 180 days and one year without their license. Someone who did cause injury to others could lose their driver’s license for a minimum of three years after a conviction.
The only sure way to avoid the loss of driving privileges is to assertively respond to pending DUI charges. Those who avoid a conviction avoid any penalties that the courts might otherwise impose. To this end, learning more about Florida’s rules for DUI charges can help people make informed decisions after an arrest. Mandatory penalties make mounting a defense a worthwhile investment of energy in many cases.