Taking DUI Charges Seriously

If you recently weathered the experience of having blue and red lights flashing in your rearview mirror, you are all too familiar with the horrifying “drop” in one’s stomach that generally occurs when an individual is pulled over by law enforcement. If you have been charged with drunk or otherwise impaired driving, you may be understandably tempted to push all thoughts and feelings associated with your arrest aside. If your “fight, flight, or freeze” response is more “flight” or “freeze,” that is just how your mind and body are processing your situation. However, it is important to work through these instincts so that you can focus on fighting for your best interests and for the future itself.

Potential DUI and DWI consequences

As an experienced DUI lawyer – including those who practice at The Law Office of Daniel J. Wright – can confirm, the potential consequences of an impaired driving conviction are nothing to mess around with. Both short-term and long-term consequences of a conviction could affect your finances, your family, and your very liberty.

Commonly, impaired driving convictions result in mandatory driver safety education course requirements and/or mandatory substance abuse treatment. Depending on the severity of your alleged offense, you could face fines, mandatory community service hour requirements, probation, and even the loss of your driver’s license. If you need your car to get to work or to get your kids to school, medical appointments, etc., the loss of your license could be consequential for your entire family. Similarly, if you end up in jail for your offense, your alleged infraction could affect your family, employment status, and a host of other realities that are important to you.

Additionally, either having a new criminal record to contend with or a longer “rap sheet” than you had before can lead to difficulty securing housing, credit, entrance to educational programs, and employment. Criminal records don’t just pose a burdensome challenge in the short-term. Your criminal record could impact your ability to do as you please for the remainder of your life.

Taking your criminal charges seriously can be a genuine challenge when they are the last things that you want to be thinking about. However, it is critically important that you speak with an attorney in your area about next steps. Building a strong defense to the charges against you now may save you and your family from a great deal of suffering later.