For anyone who has been arrested and charged for DWI in Texas, there are numerous questions and concerns. Among the most important of these concerns involves driving privileges. For most American adults, our cars are critical to our way of life and our survival, which makes protecting your driver’s license a very important part of the DWI proceedings.
Although most people know that a DWI can involve losing your license, they don’t know the details and nuances critical to protecting that license.
A distinct process
Whenever someone is charged with DWI, the license suspension process begins. This is a separate and distinct process from the criminal case and needs to be given its own attention.
In other words, if you fight and successfully get your DWI charges dropped, it won’t matter. Your driver’s license process is still moving forward, and you still need to fight to keep your driving privileges.
The suspension
With a DWI charge, you will lose your driving privileges from 90 days up to a full year. Aggravating factors like extraordinarily high blood-alcohol content, causing an accident, driving drunk with a child in the car or driving with an open container could increase that license suspension time.
What you need to do
At the time of arrest, the officer should provide you with a temporary license. But at that point of arrest, the administrative process will begin immediately.
It is critical to contact the Texas Department of Public Safety to request a hearing. Failure to get the hearing on the books will result in a suspended license.
Really, you should call a lawyer immediately if you have been arrested for DWI. A skilled criminal defense lawyer can fight for you, help you minimize the criminal penalties and help you retain your driving privileges.