Your driving privilege will be suspended for 12 months for your first refusal, or 18 months if you have previously lost your license for refusing a breath test.  Additionally, refusing to take a breath test following a DUI arrest could subject you to additional criminal charges!

You have a right to contest the validity of the suspension, but you must do so within ten days of your arrest, otherwise you will be forever barred from contesting your suspension.  Contact Orlando DUI Attorney Shane Fischer for more information about how I can protect your rights, and possibly prevent suspension of your driving privilege following a DUI arrest.

Following your DUI arrest, the arresting officer will give you a piece of paper (similar to a citation) that serves as a temporary driving permit for the next ten days.  Within those 10 days, you must file a written request with the Department of Motor Vehicles for a Formal Review Hearing. 

Once D.H.S.M.V. receives your request for a hearing, you will be issued a Temporary Driving Permit good for six weeks while your review hearing is pending.  If you win your hearing, your license will be returned to you without restrictions.  However, if you lose the hearing, you must wait 30 days if you blew over .08, or 90 days if you refused to blow, and enroll in the DUI school, before you will be eligible for a hardship license.  Fla. Stat. §322.2615(10). 

However, you will not be eligible for a hardship license if you refused a breath test and you have previously lost your license for refusing to take the breath test, even if charges are subsequently dropped.  Fla. Stat. §322.271(2)(a).  Since the paperwork can be confusing and you are under strict time deadlines, you need an attorney familiar with Florida’s Administrative Review process so that you don’t lose your license unnecessarily.  Contact Orlando DUI Lawyer Shane Fischer for questions about challenging your license suspension.

You may be eligible for a “business purposes” (hardship) license under the following circumstances:

*In addition to the above requirements, someone convicted of DUI manslaughter who is seeking a hardship license must meet the following conditions:
1. No drug related arrests for the last 5 years;
2. You have not driven a car for the last 5 years; and
3. Be alcohol and drug free for the past 5 years.

Failure to report for counseling or treatment shall result in cancellation of your hardship license.

The above requirements are the minimum allowed by the Department of Highway Safety & Motor Vehicles. The court may impose additional sanctions that will require compliance before you will be allowed to obtain a hardship license. Contact Orlando DUI lawyer Shane Fischer for more information.

Reinstatement of your license is not automatic. You must apply to the Department of Highway Safety & Motor Vehicles even if the revocation period has passed. Otherwise, your license will remain suspended.

A driving privilege restricted to business purposes only means you are limited to driving necessary to maintain your livelihood, including:

- driving to and from work;
- necessary on-the-job driving;
- driving for school or other educational purposes;
- driving for church; and
- driving for medical purposes.
Fla. Stat. §322.271(1)(c)1.

It is a license issued by the Department of Motor Vehicles allowing you to drive to and from work and any necessary on-the-job driving required by your employer or your job.  Fla. Stat. §322.271(1)(c)2.

A hardship license for “employment purposes” only is more restrictive. If you are allowed to drive for “employment purposes only” you cannot drive for school, church, or for medical reasons such as a doctor appointment. Instead, you are only allowed to drive to and from work and any necessary on-the-job driving required by your employer or your job. If you are caught driving in violation of your restriction, you could face misdemeanor charges of Violating of Driver License Restriction, Fla. Stat. §322.273.

Florida Law requires you to take any sobriety test required by law. Since roadside tests are not required, you are not legally required to take them; however, your refusal will be used against you and will certainly result in your arrest for DUI  This is because refusing to take the tests is considered evidence of a guilty conscious and provides the police officer with probable cause to arrest you. Unfortunately, some police officers mistakenly think that they can compel you to take the tests. If a police officer tells you that you must take the tests, they are breaking the law. If this happens, contact Orlando DUI Lawyer Shane Fischer. I will vigorously challenge the officer’s assumptions and seek to have any inadmissible evidence excluded from your case.

You do not have a right to speak with an attorney before taking a breath test because a breath test is considered a search, not testimony. Since you do not have the right to an attorney prior to a search, you don’t have the right to an attorney prior to taking a breath test. However, if you asked to call an attorney, took the breath test, and the police officer failed to provide you with a phone to call a lawyer, the police officer may have violated Fla. Stat. §316.1932(1)(f)3, which requires the arresting officer to provide the DUI arrestee with timely telephone access to secure an independent test. Contact Attorney Shane Fischer if the officer ignored your request for an attorney.

There is no mandatory jail for a first time misdemeanor DUI; however, if you are found guilty at trial the judge could sentence you up to 180 days in jail, the maximum for a first time offender.  You may face jail time if you have prior convictions, as shown below:

• 1st DUI conviction: No mandatory jail (180 day maximum)
• 2nd DUI conviction: 10 day minimum if arrested for DUI within 5 years of a prior DUI conviction; otherwise, no mandatory jail. (1 year maximum)
• 3rd DUI conviction: 30 day minimum if arrested for DUI within 10 years of a prior DUI conviction; Otherwise, no mandatory jail. (1 year maximum)
• 4th DUI conviction: No mandatory jail. (5 year maximum)

Additional sanctions will apply if you caused property damage, injury or death. Contact Orlando DUI Attorney Shane Fischer for more information.

If you have a CDL and are arrested for DUI, you will be disqualified from operating a commercial motor vehicle for one year. You also will be prohibited from obtaining a hardship license to operate a commercial motor vehicle. Fla. Stat. §322.64(1).

You will permanently lose your CDL if you have been arrested for DUI and have a previously been disqualified from operating a commercial motor vehicle due to a DUI. Fla. Stat. §322.64(8).

If you carry a CDL, are arrested for DUI, and want to challenge the suspension of your license, you must do so within 10 days of your arrest; otherwise, you will be forever barred from challenging your suspension. Contact Orlando DUI Lawyer Shane Fischer for more information.