I Was Arrested for DUI – How Long Will My License Be Suspended For?
After a 30-day grace period, your license will be suspended for four months.[i]
Once you’re arrested for DUI, the police officer will confiscate your driver’s license and give you a temporary license.[ii] This temporary license will allow you to drive as you normally do for 30 days. After that, the temporary license will expire and your privilege to drive will be suspended for four months. You will be arrested if you’re found driving while your license is suspended.
You should be aware that four months is a baseline. The suspension period can last for up to a year or longer if, for instance, you have a prior DUI conviction, are currently on probation for DUI, refuse what’s known as a chemical test, or are under the age of 21.[iii]
What Happens If I Drive While My License Is Suspended?
Driving on a suspended license is a misdemeanor in and of itself, punishable by a fine and up to six months in jail.[iv] Also, if you were unlicensed to begin with, the temporary license won’t give you the right to drive. Driving while unlicensed is also a misdemeanor.[v]
You will be arrested if you are found driving while your license is suspended.
I Can’t Go Without Driving for Four Months – Is There Anything I Can Do?
Yes. You have two options: (1) challenge the suspension; and (2) apply for a restricted driver’s license.
Option 1: Challenge the License Suspension
Remember: the DMV will suspend your license for four months, at minimum, because a police officer alleged that you were driving while under the influence.[vi] A DMV hearing is your opportunity to challenge the officer’s allegation.
If you win at your DMV hearing, your license won’t be suspended.
You’ll find the process for requesting a DMV hearing on the temporary license that you receive from the police officer. The temporary license isn’t an actual plastic card. Instead, it’s a piece of paper, specifically, the third page of a form officially titled “Administrative Per Se Suspension / Revocation Order and Temporary Driver License.” Your temporary license will tell you how to schedule a DMV hearing with your local Driver Safety Branch Office.
But you must request your DMV hearing within 10 days of your arrest.
If you fail to request a DMV hearing within 10 days of your arrest, your license will be automatically suspended.[vii]
At your DMV hearing, you can arrange to have your arresting officer available for cross-examination by your criminal defense attorney. You’ll have access to the DMV’s evidence (typically, the officer’s report(s) from the night of the arrest), and you can even present your own evidence or witness testimony. However, you must do all of this at your own expense. Subpoenas will have to be served; copying costs reimbursed; and, if you’d like an officer to testify, you’ll have to reimburse him or her for his or her time and / or mileage.[viii]
In addition to being expensive, DMV hearings are also notoriously difficult to win. One reason for this is that the person presiding over the hearing, a DMV officer, is not an independent individual, but an employee of the DMV. Additionally, the formal rules of evidence that are followed in a courtroom, and which are meant to keep unreliable information out, are slightly relaxed during DMV hearings.[ix]
Because of these challenges, some drivers are reluctant to ask for a DMV hearing. Whether requesting a DMV hearing is right for you will depend on an analysis of the unique circumstances of your arrest. If an arresting officer’s observations can be significantly undermined, or if game-changing evidence favorable to your case (such as a contradictory blood alcohol analysis) is found, then requesting a DMV hearing may be appropriate.
If you are unsuccessful at your DMV hearing, then your license will be suspended and, following the 30-day grace period, you will be unable to drive for four months.[x]
Option 2: Apply for a Restricted Driver’s License
If you lose your DMV hearing, or fail to request one within the 10-day window, you can apply for a restricted driver’s license.
A restricted license will allow you to drive for the limited purposes of commuting to work; driving during work, if that’s part of your job; and attending a DUI class.[xi]
To apply for a restricted license, you must:
- Enroll in the 3-month, First-Offender DUI class;[xii]
- Submit proof to the DMV that your vehicle is insured despite your DUI arrest;[xiii] and
- Pay the $125 license reinstatement fee[xiv]
If you are granted a restricted license, it won’t take effect immediately. You’ll be required to endure a 1-month, so-called hard suspension, which is a period of 30 days during which you cannot drive at all.[xv] This hard suspension applies to commercial drivers as well. [xvi]
Here’s what it would look like: after you’re arrested, you’ll have a 30-day grace period to drive as you normally do. After this grace period expires, the 1-month hard suspension takes effect and you’ll be prohibited from driving. Then, once the hard suspension is over, you’ll be able to drive to work and your DUI class using your restricted license. Again, the restricted license will not allow you to drive for any other purpose beyond these two activities.
Your restricted driver’s license will remain in effect for 5 months.[xvii]
Finally, you should be aware that some factors will render you ineligible to apply for a restricted license. For instance, you cannot apply for a restricted license if[xviii]:
- You’ve recently been arrested for another DUI (even if charges haven’t been filed)
- You have another DUI case that is currently pending
- Your license was previously suspended in the last 10 years because of a DUI arrest, a DUI conviction, or for refusing the post-arrest chemical test
Conclusion
Getting arrested for DUI can fill you with feelings of anxiety – anxiety over fighting the case and what how you will be affected if you are convicted. But the immediate concern is your ability to drive, which, after a 30-day grace period, will be suspended for four months if you fail to take action.
Challenging the license suspension and applying for a restricted license are two ways to protect your privilege to drive and ensure that you don’t lose your job because of one allegation.
Michael J. Ocampo, is a skilled attorney and former deputy district attorney. If you’ve been arrested for DUI and would like help safeguarding your driver’s license, contact Michael at (714) 451-6834 to schedule your free, no-obligation consultation.
[i] Vehicle Code §13353.3(b)(1).
[ii] Vehicle Code §§13382(a), (b).
[iii] See, for instance, Vehicle Code §13353.3(b)(2).
[iv] Vehicle Code §§14601.5(a), (d)(1); 13353.2(a).
[v] Vehicle Code §§12500(a), (b).
[vi] Vehicle Code §13353.3(b)(1).
[vii] Vehicle Code §§ 13353.2(d), 13558(b).
[viii] Government Code §§11450.4(b), 68097.2(c).
[ix] Vehicle Code §§14104.7, 14112; Government Code §11513(c).
[x] Vehicle Code §13353.3(b)(1).
[xi] Vehicle Code §13353.7(a). See also Vehicle Code §13352.4(c).
[xii] Vehicle Code §13353.7(a).
[xiii] Vehicle Code §13353.7(a). (2).
[xiv] See https://www.dmv.org/ca-california/suspended-license.php.
[xv] Vehicle Code §13353.7(a).
[xvi] Vehicle Code §13353.7(a), (d).
[xvii] Vehicle Code §13353.7(a)(3).
[xviii] Vehicle Code §11353.7(a).
Attorney Michael J. Ocampo is a former deputy district attorney. He focuses his practice exclusively on criminal law so that he can help those accused of a crime — often ordinary, everyday people — ensure that their rights are honored and that they receive a fair opportunity to be heard.
