What is the punishment for drunk driving?
Drunk driving carries serious penalties. Although the court may go easier on first-time offenders, even in first-offense cases the possible sentences include stiff fines and jail time. If the circumstances warrant it, however, the court may choose less restrictive options, including probation, community service, or even mandated AA attendance or the like. For subsequent offenses, the likelihood of imprisonment increases, and in all cases, the loss of driving privileges, at least temporarily, is almost guaranteed.
Drunk driving carries serious penalties. Although the court may go easier on first-time offenders, even in first-offense cases the possible sentences include stiff fines and license loss. For subsequent offenses, the likelihood of imprisonment increases, and in all cases, the loss of driving privileges-at least temporarily-is almost guaranteed.
NOTE: Effective July 1, 2004, Virginia changed many DUI penalties. This section addresses the new penalties. In Virginia, a DUI is a Class 1 misdemeanor. The maximum punishment for a first offense is a $2,500 fine, one year in jail, and the loss of one’s driving privileges for one year. Generally, first-time offenders with blood alcohol levels below 0.12, who did not cause an accident, will not go to jail. Instead, the Judge will usually suspend all of the jail time he orders. This means that he will order a Defendant to serve some time (usually 30 days) in jail but, assuming the Defendant maintains generally good behavior and obeys all court orders for one year, he will not have to actually sit in jail. Thus, the sentence becomes unsupervised probation. The usual fine for a DUI is $300. Additionally, all persons convicted of DUI are, by law, required to lose their driving privileges for one year (or three years for subsequent offenses). The Judge no longer has discretion over this pun
Again, this varies according to the laws of the state and the customs of the local jurisdiction. Generally speaking, a conviction for a first offense may involve a fine, a license suspension restriction, and attendance at a DUI education course for a period of time, and probation for perhaps three years. A short jail sentence may or may not be required; for a second offense, it almost certainly will. Additional punishment may involve community service, ignition interlock devices, AA meetings, and/or impounding of the vehicle. See the Penalties section of this site for specific Massachusetts OUI penalties.
Drunk driving carries serious penalties. Although the court may go easier on first-time offenders, even in first-offense cases the possible sentences include stiff fines and jail time. If the circumstances warrant it, however, the court may choose less restrictive options, including probation, community service, or even mandated AA attendance or the like. For subsequent offenses, the likelihood of imprisonment increases, and in all cases, the loss of driving privileges-at least temporarily-is almost guaranteed.
