Operating While Intoxicated (OWI) is probably the most common drinking and driving offense that individuals are charged with. Under Michigan law, MCL 257.625, operating while intoxicated is charged when a person’s blood alcohol level is a .08 or above.

A first offense OWI under MCL 257.625(7)(b)(i) is a 93-day misdemeanor, and will result in the suspension of your driver’s license, points added to your master driving record, driver responsibility fees, as well as court fines and costs.

Second Offense OWI is charged when the arrest for the second offense occurs within seven years of a prior driving under the influence conviction. The potential jail time is increased for OWI second carrying a possible year in jail. OWI second also includes mandatory license revocation, license points, vehicle immobilization or vehicle forfeiture, driver responsibility fees, as well as court fines and costs.

Operating While Intoxicated can be beat. 

Police will often make an illegal stop of a vehicle or an arrest when they shouldn’t. Additionally, it isn’t uncommon for the police to perform chemical testing improperly. Any of these issues could lead to an OWI dismissal. A person’s medical history can play a factor in defending an OWI. Some juries may be unwilling to convict someone of OWI.

What is Super Drunk Driving?

High BAC Greater than .17more commonly referred to as “Super Drunk” is a fairly new drinking and driving offense that became law in 2010. Per MCL 257.625(1)(c) Super Drunk is charged when your blood alcohol level is alleged to be a .17 of greater (grams per 100 milliliters of blood).

What is the Penalty for Super Drunk High BAC Driving?

Per MCL 257.625(9) The offense carries penalties greater than an OWI that include jail time of up to 6 months for a first offense with the loss of your license for an entire year. You would be eligible for a restricted license after 45 days of a hard suspension, but a Breath Alcohol Ignition Interlock Device (BAIID) or blow and go must be installed in the vehicle.

What are the Defenses for Super Drunk High BAC?

As of today, breath testing is not calibrated at a .17 level, which can cause doubt in the minds of jurors. Other defenses applicable to the Super Drunk offense are all of those that would apply to the lesser offense of OWI.

What is Driving on Drugs charge in Michigan?

Operating with the Presence of a Controlled Substance makes it illegal for a person to operate a motor vehicle with any amount of a scheduled 1 controlled substance in their system, MCL 257.625(8). Prosecution must prove that the active drug was in your system at the time of driving.

Another common drug driving offense is Driving While Impaired by a Controlled Substance.This offense is usually charged when a person is accused of impaired driving due to a prescription like Xanax, Vicodin, or if marijuana is in their system and they have a medical marijuana card. This offense is charged even if your prescription is a valid lawful prescription. The prosecution must prove not only was a drug in your system but also that the drug impaired your ability to drive.

What are the Penalties for Driving on Drugs?

A first offense for driving on drugs carries up to 93 days in jail, a fine of up to $500, 360 hours community service under MCL 257.625(9)(a), and possible vehicle immobilization under MCL 257.904d. Additionally, the secretary of state will add 6 points on your driving record, and your license will be suspended.

A second offense carries a year in jail with mandatory jail time and a third offense is a felony that carries prison time.

What are the Defenses to Driving on Drugs?

Driving on drugs, like any driving under the influence charge, can be defended. The prosecution must prove that a controlled substance was active in your system and they are often trying to do so using complicated measurements with room for error. Other common defenses include a bad stop, a bad arrest, or a bad investigation by police.

If you were arrested for suspicion of driving under the influence with children in your vehicle under the age of 16 then it is likely that you will be charged with Child Endangerment under MCL 257.625(7)(a).

To prove Operating While Intoxicated – Child Endangerment the prosecution must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that you were operating a motor vehicle while impaired by liquor or a controlled substance and there was a child, under the age of 16, in your car at the time you were driving.

Operating While Intoxicated – Child Endangerment Penalties

MCL 257.625 (7)(a)(i) makes a first offense Child Endangerment a misdemeanor with a mandatory 5-day minimum jail term and a maximum of up to a year in jail unless the judge orders 30 to 90 days of community service. Fines range from $200-$1000 plus costs and the loss of your license. MCL 257.625(7)(B).

Driving privileges will be suspended for 90 days and restricted for an additional 90 days after the suspension

A conviction will also result in vehicle forfeiture or vehicle immobilization.

Second offense Child Endangerment is a felony punishable by 1 to 5 years in prison.

Defending against Drinking and Driving With a Child in the Car

The same defenses that are available for Operating While Intoxicated, or Operating While Impaired by a Controlled Substance, are available in trial endangerment. A violation of your rights by the police could mean an outright dismissal.

In many cases where a dismissal isn’t possible or we do not believe we can win at trial we will attempt to reach a deal where the offense is changed. By changing the offense our clients can avoid many of the penalties above.

What is a Second Offense Drunk Driving?

A second drunk driving offense that occurs within seven years of a first offense can be charged as an OWI second offense.

This second offense drunk driving enhancement includes the Super Drunk Offense (OWI High BAC >.17), Operating While Intoxicated (OWI), Operating While Visibly Impaired (OWVI), and the Zero Tolerance Minor with a BAC offense, or any combination of these offenses.

As long as the arrest for the new offense occurs within seven years of the conviction for the first offense the enhanced operating while intoxicated second offense can be charged.

What is the penalty for a 2nd Offense Drunk Driving?

Under MCL 257.625(11)(b)(i)-(ii), a second offense drunk driving carries significantly increased penalties.

There is now a mandatory minimum jail term of at least 5 days but could be as much as a full year.

MCL 257.625(b)(i)

The minimum fine for a second offense drunk driving is $200 and the maximum fine is up to $1,000.00 plus costs. MCL 257.625(b)

Mandatory community service requires that at least 30 to 90 days be completed. MCL 257.625(b)(ii)

As a collateral consequence, MCL 257.625n, requires that the vehicle be forfeited or immobilized under MCL 257.904d.

Finally, as another collateral consequence, the person’s driver license is revoked under MCL 257.303. A driver license revocation means that the person loses all driving privileges; there are no hardships or restrictions allowed.

Drinking and Driving Second Offense Defense

There are defenses to a second offense drunk driving just like any other drinking and driving offense.

Even if there is no defense to your case it may be possible to get a reduced offense in order to avoid the harsh penalties listed above.

OWI lawyer Aaron J. Boria has saved countless people facing a drunk driving second their driver license, kept them out of jail and saved their vehicle from forfeiture.

Operating While Intoxicated Third Offense is a felony.  In 2006, Michigan’s Drunk Driving law was amended to make any third offense OWI in a person’s lifetime a felony regardless how much time has passed since prior offenses.

Penalties for OWI third are a fine of $500-$5000 plus costs, 1 to 5 years in prison, or a minimum 30 days jail with 60 to 180 days community service, vehicle immobilization, driver license points and driver responsibility fees. A third offense OWI

will also result in the driver license being suspended or revoked.

Felony OWI is more common than you would think. Drinking and driving is probably the only criminal offense that you can make an effort not to break and still be charged with, after all, you are legally allowed to drink and drive, it’s illegal to be over the limit while driving. Graduation parties, work parties, anniversaries, celebrations, and having a drink or two with a friend can result in an operating while intoxicated charge. Many people believe that alcohol metabolizes in the body one drink per one hour. However, there are so many more factors and the rate is truly different for every person.

Like all driving under the influence offenses OWI third can be fought. Any defense that would apply to misdemeanor driving under the influence would apply to felony driving under the influence. As a DUI defense lawyer, we look to see if we can challenge the stop, challenge the arrest, challenge the chemical testing, and challenge the prosecutor’s ability to meet the elements of the charge.

What is minor driving with a BAC?

Zero Tolerance or Minor with a BAC is the offense charged when a minor is accused of driving with a blood alcohol level.

Michigan law, MCL 257.625(6), makes it illegal for a person less than 21 years of age, to operate a motor vehicle, while having the presence of a bodily alcohol.

If the minor has a blood alcohol level of .08 or higher they will likely be charged with Operating While Intoxicated.

What is the penalty for a minor accused of drinking and driving?

The penalty for a minor operating with any BAC is up to 360 hours of community service, $250 fine, cost of prosecution, and rehabilitative programs, MCL 257.625(b)(5). A second offense minor with any BAC is punishable by up to 93 days in jail, 60 days community service and a fine of $500 plus costs.

What are minor driving with a BAC defenses?

Along with the common defenses to drinking and driving, minor with a BAC has an additional defense under MCL 257.625(23) that allows defendant to provide evidence that the alcohol was consumed as part of a recognized religious ceremony.

There is a constitutional right to a jury trial for minor with BAC and that right was upheld in People v Antkoviak, 242 Mich App 424 (2000).