DWI Lawyer - Asheville, North Carolina

If you find yourself arrested for a DWI, there can be long lasting repercussions, including loss of driving privileges, monetary fines, and time in jail. To understand your options, it is imperative you talk to a DWI criminal defense attorney in Asheville, North Carolina.If you are charged with a DWI, you should seek the legal advice of an assertive and skilled DWI criminal defense attorney. It is important that anyone facing such a charge understand what difficulties they will face.

Administrative Hearing

Pursuant to North Carolina law, an individual has 10 (ten) days to ask for an administrative hearing from the North Carolina DMV. If you fail to ask for a hearing within 10 (ten) days, your right to the hearing is lost, and your license is suspended for the statutory time frame applicable to your case. This is why timing is so important.

DWI Charges in Asheville, North Carolina

Under North Carolina law, once you have been cited for violating the DWI statute, the state initiates two simultaneous yet separate legal actions against you. The criminal action is in response to the ticket that was issued to you, while the administrative action is brought against your Missouri driver's license by the Department of Motor Vehicles. With both of these come the chance of losing your North Carolina driver's license.

While both actions can result in the suspension of driving privileges, it is important to remember that there may be additional penalties to consider and that each of these actions must be handled separately.

DWI Penalties for First Time Offenders in Asheville

Individuals with a first time DWI conviction in North Carolina can face:

• DWI Incarceration - A first time DWI offender in North Carolina faces imprisonment for a minimum of 24 hours up to a maximum of 2 years.
• Refusal of Chemical DWI Test - Refusing to submit to a test when requested by Asheville police will result in the immediate loss of driving privileges for at least 30 (thirty) days, this is in addition to a minimum 12 (twelve) month revocation by the Department of Motor Vehicles. Depending on a lot of factors, limited driving privileges may be allowed after six months.
• CDL / Commercial Drivers - Commercial drivers are in violation of the DWI statute with a blood alcohol content (BAC) of 0.04. A first time North Carolina DWI conviction will result in the loss of the commercial driver's license (CDL) for 1 year, while any subsequent DWI offenses will result in a lifetime loss of the commercial license.
• Driving Privileges in North Carolina - A DWI conviction will result revocation of all driving privileges for one year.
• DWI Fines - The minimum fine for a first time DWI is $100.00 and can go up to $2,000.00.

Subsequent DWI Offenses

Penalties are increasingly severe for any additional DWI violations. Due to the complexity of DWI laws in North Carolina, you may not be aware of your rights and the potential defenses available to your case. Please contact a DWI criminal defense attorney for a free and immediate consultation.

North Carolina and DWI

North Carolina law requires that DWI offenders obtain a substance abuse assessment and complete the recommended intervention, which is either education or treatment. Sobriety checkpoints are continually set up in all North Carolina counties as part of the state's effective anti-drunk driving campaign. Between July 2006 and June 2007, over 28,000 North Carolinians completed these requirements after being convicted of a DWI.

Legal Disclaimer: The information you obtain at this site is not, nor is it intended to be, legal advice. You should consult an attorney for advice regarding your individual situation. Contacting us does not create an attorney-client relationship. Please do not send any confidential information to us until such time as an attorney-client relationship has been established.

The Booze It & Lose It campaign in Asheville, North Carolina targets drunk drivers by using innovative DWI education (and enforcement.) Throughout North Carolina, sobriety checkpoints are used as part of the state's highly effective anti-DWI campaign. Using 6 mobile breath-alcohol testing units (called BATMobiles), Asheville police increases efficiency of DWI processing on the scene. Each vehicle comes with workstations for Intoxilyzer 5000 breath test instruments, cellular telephones, traffic cones, traffic vests, computers, search batons, screening test devices and more.