For a lot of my first-time DWI clients, this is their only encounter with law enforcement. They may have had a speeding ticket or something of that sort, but never anything that had the potential for jail time. It’s one reason why getting a DWI is very stressful, and I really do understand that.
When it comes to the question of you going to jail, there are lots and lots of variables to consider. I’m going to sound more like a lawyer than a friend for just a moment.
If the officers followed the law precisely, they’re supposed to take individuals to jail. But sometimes they take people home instead of jail. Sometimes an officer releases people to their friends. Officers are supposed to do testing in the jail and hold them for four hours. But it doesn’t always happen like that.
Facts and circumstances of what exactly happened to you will affect your case and if you have to go to jail or not. Those circumstances also influence how it needs to be handled in the courtroom to keep you from serving any further time in jail. That’s why I invite clients to contact my office to discuss details. The various jurisdictions in our area all handle cases differently, and we need to discuss what happened to you.
By now, I’m sure you’re wondering if you must serve some jail time, how long will it be? A weekend? A week? A month? You’ve probably heard a lot of different answers from different sources.
The good news, and the honest answer, is that it’s highly unlikely that you’ll spend any time in jail for a first-time DWI. I strongly recommend you forget any stories you’ve heard about your cousin’s uncle’s best friend who got a DWI 15 years ago two states over. Listen to your lawyer. They will know the courts in which they work.
I know that in Greene County, Missouri, first-time DWIs don’t go to jail very often. But a DWI in state court? That can mean 180 days in jail. In municipal court, the maximum sentence is up to a year in jail. They’re all different.
If you ignore the story of your cousin’s uncle’s best friend who got a DWI 15 years ago two states over and instead decide to go online to research the possibility of jail time, you’ll find that under the law if you blew over .150, you’re supposed to go to jail for two days. If you blow over 2.0, that is five days in jail.
However, I’ve had many clients who registered over those limits on a breathalyzer test and came nowhere close to going to jail. Of course, that isn’t a guarantee, each case is different. If you took a swing at the cop or something like that, you might not dodge a weekend in jail…or more.
For most of my clients, though, jail isn’t even something we’re concerned about. You may have gone out, overindulged or over-celebrated, didn’t eat enough dinner, and suddenly, you’ve got a DWI. You likely didn’t even feel drunk, but you were still over the legal limit.
It could happen to any of us. But none of us are likely to go to jail, as long as we have a good attorney to handle our case.