Chicago DUI attorney discusses the enhanced consequences of a subsequent DUI

This Chicago DUI attorney has posted here, here, and here about the consequences of a DUI.  What happens if you are the person who is charged with a DUI… again?

The stakes are considerably higher.  In Illinois, a DUI can’t be sealed or expunged.  That means it is on your record forever.  In Illinois, at the minimum, a DUI is a Class A misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail, fines up to $2500, or any combination of jail and fines.

If it is the second or subsequent time, you have been charged with a DUI, within the last five years, and you submit to chemical testing with a result over the legal limit of .08 your driving privileges will be suspended for at least one year.   On the other hand, if you refuse to submit to chemical testing (and it isn’t your first DUI arrest in the last five years) your license will be suspended for a minimum of three years.  This is simply for being charged with a DUI.  Even if your DUI is dismissed, your license would still be suspended unless you are able to beat the Statutory Summary Suspension.

If you are found guilty, or you choose to plead guilty, on a DUI and this is not the first DUI charge you have had with a guilty disposition, one of the most significant collateral consequences of that subsequent DUI is a revocation of your driving privileges.

When an Illinois Driver’s license is revoked, based on a conviction for a DUI, driving privileges cannot be restored without a successful hearing before the Secretary of State.

The bottom line is it is especially important to consider all of your defense options if you get charged with a DUI the first time.