Among various crimes, Driving While Intoxicated (DWI) and driving under influence of alcohol or drugs (DUI) are a punishable offence in Minnesota and it is dealt strictly. DWI and DUI is a punishable offence under the section 169A.20 under the Minnesota State. The punishment for the crimes depends on the degree of it; and degrees vary from 1 to 4. The lowest level starts with the Fourth degree. If you are a first time offender under DWI/DUI, it is considered a misdemeanour and you can be imprisoned for 90 days and be fined up to $1,000.
If you commit a second offence under DWI and your preceding DWI offence is less than 10 years ago, and if you refuse to comply with a chemical breath or urine test for presence of intoxicating substances, your offence will be considered a gross misdemeanour and will be treated as a third degree offence. You are liable to be jailed for at most a year and be fined up to $3,000.
Before knowing about the other two degrees, you need to know what the aggravating factors of DWI violation are. The aggravating factors include:
1. A preceding DUI/DWI violation within a 10 year time span
2. A blood alcohol level of .20 when the offender is being arrested
3. If the driver has a minor under the age of 16 with him or her in the car at the time of committing the offence, especially if the minor is more than 36 months younger to the driver.
To qualify for a second degree DWI offence, you need to commit two or more aggravating factors for the DWI violation and it can cost you up to $3,000 and prison time up to a year. The third and second degree offences are termed as gross misdemeanours.
For the first degree offence, you have to commit more than three DWI violations in the 10 years span and it has to be after an immediately preceding DWI felony. You can be jailed for 3 years and have to pay a fine of $14,000.
So when you are confronted with such a situation in Minneapolis, MN, you will need services of a DWI attorney to fight the case for you. Such attorneys hold membership of the Bar Association of the State of Minnesota and National College for DUI Defence. They are well versed with DWI and DUI law. The DWI attorneys can bargain for both your fine and jail time. They take a humanitarian approach towards their clients and work hard to bring justice to them. DWI attorneys are available for people who can’t afford a lawyer also. Their fees are provided for by the state or by the car insurance company which provides the insurance for the offending vehicle. DWI attorneys in Minneapolis MN try their best to keep your driving record clean if you have been charged with a DWI offence, because a tarnished DWI record can raise your car insurance premium as well.
Locating a reputable attorney might be a daunting task but you can easily find many options simply by logging on to the Internet. Many attorneys who deal with DWI cases have websites and you can easily access them for further communication.
If you are in search of a DWI attorney in Minneapolis MN, then you may approach Carlson and Jones. It is a well reputed law firm and has been dealing with DWI & DUI cases for years. For more information, you may visit: http://www.carlsonandjones.com/.
