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A DUI charge in Ohio carries severe penalties. Many of these are mandatory, while others are optional. Some judges have their own set of "mandatory" penalties, which include a variety of sentencing options from the "optional penalties" list below.

Administrative License Suspension (A.L.S.)

  • If your breath, blood or urine test is over the legal limit, or you refused the test, the officer will take your drivers license on the spot and place you under an Administrative License Suspension. The form provided to you by the officer indicates the action taken.
  • The A.L.S. lasts for a period of 90 days to 5 years, depending on previous offenses or refusals.
  • There is a "hard-time" waiting period with absolutely no driving privileges whatsoever. This period lasts at least 15 days or more depending on previous offenses or refusals.
  • Some judges will allow a "stay" of the ALS., which effectively puts the A.L.S. "on hold" until a later date. Many courts will not allow a stay of the A.L.S. Some judges will require it to be filed in writing or by an attorney.
  • The A.L.S. is independent of the DUI charge itself, which usually carries a longer, mandatory license suspension. Even if you overcome the DUI charge, the A.L.S. remains in most cases.
  • At the end of the A.L.S., you must pay a $425.00 reinstatement fee to the B.M.V. to get your driver’s license back. Otherwise, you will continue to be suspended indefinitely.

1st Offense

  • Jail – A minimum of 72 consecutive hours in jail or a drivers intervention program (DUI school).
  • Fine – A minimum of $325 plus court costs.
  • Court License Suspension – A minimum of six months, with limited privileges only after the "hard time" waiting period.
  • A "high-end" test, or a refusal with a prior in the previous 20 years, doubles the mandatory jail time to six days jail (or three days jail and three days in the drivers intervention program). It also makes the restricted plates mandatory.

2nd Offense

  • Jail – A minimum or ten consecutive days.
  • Fine – A minimum of $475 plus court costs.
  • Court License Suspension – A minimum of one year with a minimum "hard-time" period with no driving privileges for thirty days.
  • Mandatory restricted license plates (yellow with red numbers).
  • Mandatory 90 days immobilization of the vehicle used if titled to the defendant when the offense was committed.
  • A "high-end" test, or a refusal with a prior in the previous 20 years, doubles the mandatory jail time to twenty days.

3rd Offense

  • Jail – A minimum of 30 consecutive days.
  • Fine – A minimum of $800 plus court costs.
  • Court License Suspension – a minimum of two years, with a “hard time” waiting period of six months and a required ignition disabling device for days 181 to 365.
  • Mandatory restricted plates (yellow with red numbers).
  • Mandatory forfeiture of the vehicle used if titled to the defendant when the offense is committed.

Subsequent DUI Offenses

  • A fourth or fifth offense in six years, or a sixth offense in twenty years, constitutes a felony DUI.
  • Once your have a Felony DUI on your record, all future DUI charges are felonies.
  • Felony DUI offenses carry mandatory jail and/or prison sentences, minimum fines of $800 plus court costs, mandatory license suspensions of 3 years to life, mandatory restricted plates (yellow with red numbers) vehicle forfeiture and treatment programs.
  

Optional DUI Penalties

Misdemeanor DUI offenses:

  • Fine - $325 to $2,750 depending on the level of the offense.
  • Jail – Up to six months on first or second offenses, and one year on a third offense.
  • Court License Suspension – 3,5 or ten years, depending on the level of the offense.
  • No driving privileges – Some judges will not grant any driving privileges unless you plead guilty and/or pay your fines and court costs in full.
  • Alcohol/drug treatment – Some judges will require treatment programs under various conditions.
  • Restricted license plates – Required by some judges even for first offenders.
  • Vehicle disabling device – Some courts may require them for limited privileges or as a condition of bond.
  • Community Work Services – Required by some judges.
  • Probation, ban on all drinking, random alcohol/drug testing, SCRAM ankle bracelet may be imposed in some courts.

Felony DUI Penalties

  • Felony penalties carry mandatory incarceration. Judges are reluctant to use local jails to house prisoners long term, and often will opt for mandatory prison terms instead, up to 5 years.
  • Fines range from $800 to $10,000.
  • Court license suspensions range from 3 years to life, with absolutely no privileges for the first 3 years.
  • Vehicle forfeiture is mandated.
  • Restricted plates (yellow plates with red letters) are mandatory, if privileges are ever allowed.
  • Judges may impose any of the penalties listed under misdemeanor DUI offenses as well as a host of community control sanctions, listed in the Ohio Revised Code.

Other DUI Considerations

  • Mandatory DUI incarceration has to be served all at once. You cannot split the time up.
  • Judges are not allowed to grant work releases during the mandatory incarceration.
  • There are severe penalties for transferring a vehicle out of your name if it was used in certain DUI offenses. The judge will find you in contempt and require you to repay the N.A.D.A. blue book value of the vehicle as a penalty.
  • For all CDL holders, a first DUI conviction in Ohio now results in a 1-year commercial driver’s license disqualification. A second DUI results in a lifetime CDL disqualification. It doesn’t matter whether the offense was committed in a commercial vehicle or a private vehicle.
  • For DUI offenses, certain controlled substances such as marijuana, amphetamines, cocaine, L.S.D., phencyclidine and heroin have been assigned arbitrary prohibited concentration levels, which have no relation to impairment. These levels may exist for weeks or months after ingestion.
  • Prior offenses are calculated from date of conviction to date of current offense.
  • Different prohibited alcohol levels apply to persons under age twenty-one and holders of commercial driver’s license.
  • Ohio courts are now required to keep records of DUI offenses for fifty years.
  • A.L.S. suspension can be appealed within thirty days of your initial appearance. However, the grounds for such an appeal are very strictly limited by statute.
  • Many police departments have a policy allowing destruction of videotapes within a short period of time, for instance thirty days.

For a chart on Ohio DUI Penalties by Judge Jennifer P. Weiler, from Garfield Heights Municipal Court, click here Opens link in New Tab or New Browser.
 

If you need the assistance of an experienced criminal defense lawyer in Portage County, Summit County or Medina County, or elsewhere in Northeast Ohio, contact Attorney Dan Weisenburger right now at 330-296-8000. Attorney Weisenburger routinely defends criminal charges in the following courts:

  • Portage County, Ohio: Ravenna Municipal Court, Kent Municipal Court, Portage County Court of Common Pleas, Portage County Juvenile Court.
  • Summit County, Ohio: Akron Municipal Court, Stow Municipal Court, Summit County Court of Common Pleas.
  • Medina County Ohio: Medina Municipal Court, Wadsworth Municipal Court, Medina Court of Common Pleas.
  • Trumbull County, Ohio: Newton Falls Municipal Court, Warren Municipal Court.
For a list of jurisdictions served by the municipal courts and county courts in Portage County, Medina County, Summit County and Trumbull County, click on the arrow.
All crimes in Ohio are strictly defined by law. For a list of definitions of the most common felony and misdemeanor offenses, click on the arrow.
Disclaimer: The ohiocrimelawyer.com website is designed for general information only. Any information on this site is not to be construed as formal legal advice on criminal or DUI defense, nor formation of a lawyer/client relationship. Persons accessing this site are encouraged to seek personal advice regarding their individual legal issues.
Copyright © 2007 Dan J. Weisenburger. All Rights Reserved. Last Modified: November 2, 2009 2:57 AM