What Happens to First Time Offenders in South Dakota?
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You may be charged with a drinking under the influence or drinking while intoxicated in South Dakota if your blood alcohol content or BAC is proven to be at least 0.08 percent or higher. However, even if your blood alcohol content or BAC is around .05 percent to .08 percent, you can still be charged with the same offense in this state.
South Dakota DUI Penalties
Some penalties that apply to driving Under the Influence or first offense cases
Jail – If you are a first offender, you will be charged with an imprisonment of up to about a year without any mandatory minimums. However, plea agreements and probations will be generally available for people like you.
Fine – A charged from the range of $1000 to $5000 will be charged against you but without any mandatory minimum as well.
License Suspension – Once you are convicted with DUI, your driving license will be revoked for no less than thirty days. Your driving privileges may also be revoked by the court for a much longer period but this should not exceed a year. However, the restrictions in your privileges related to such a case can exceed that of a year or two.
Work Permit – Even if your license has been revoked, you may still be provided with some driving benefits when it comes to driving for work, going to your job, attending a court hearing and some counseling programs that may be required of you.
Education – You may be required to attend at least eight hours of classroom instruction and would be required to pay $150 for it.
Get DUI Help in South Dakota
Test Refusal – If you refuse any of these tests, namely, breath, blood, and urine test, you may be revoked of your driver’s license immediately and this may last until one year unless you subject yourself to a hearing that will prove you to be not guilty. You will also have the chance to lose your license when you refuse to take the test even if you are not necessarily drunk. Your license will then be automatically revoked by the attending officer.
Under 21 – If you happen to be under the age of 21 and you have at least .02 percent of alcohol found in your blood while you are driving, you can lose your license fora period of six months.
Insurance – The moment you are convicted with DWL, you are required to present an SR-22 or also known as the “insurance filing” to the Department of Public Safety (DPS) and maintain this insurance for three years from the date your violation has been convicted.
Once your conviction is proven, your insurance rates will then be much higher and even that of your family and your employers.
The minute you are charged with a drinking under the influence claim or DUI in South Dakota, you can consider doing just these two things:
Of course, it would do you a whole lot of good to take your drunk driving charges very seriously because it is a well known fact that drinking under the influence charges or DUI in South Dakota would provide you with a lot of consequences. A criminal record stating such would also make it hard for you to enter or apply for a job, become free as much as you deserve to be, and of course will also affect your future in general.
Hire an Experienced South Dakota DUI Attorney
Another thing you can consider doing would be to hire a drinking under the influence or DUI lawyer or attorney who has a lot of experience and background when it comes to DUI laws and courtroom proceedings and when you do you wouldn’t have to struggle with your case anymore.
You will find it easier to understand some concepts of the law. Other than this, when you hire the services of a knowledgeable lawyer and attorney, you will find that it will have a difference in the outcome of your case because it would now be well taken care of.