Georgia DUI Laws (Drunk Driving): State of Georgia DUI Laws

This Article provides time-sensitive information about what happens when you get a DUI first offense in Georgia. Read ALL of the contents, for a full understanding of what is ahead of you, on this legal journey for being charged with DUI alcohol or DUI drugs.

What happens when you get a DUI in Georgia? When a person is arrested for DUI in the Peach State, most first offenders want to know more about punishment for DUI in Georgia. Thinking that they will be convicted under DUI GA law, they begin researching Georgia DUI penalties. (See similar 8.5 inch by 11 inch form, below).

Administrative License Suspension Form DDS 1205 is filled out by the police officer who arrested you for DUI alcohol or DUI drugs. You have 30 days to file an ALS appeal or your license will be suspended.

RED ALERT! Before going any further, HAVE YOU TAKEN CARE OF THE ALL-IMPORTANT Administrative License Suspension, for which your plastic license was taken from you? This is the potentially harshest DUI punishment Georgia first offenders will face, and yet many arrestees for DUI offenses procrastinate and don’t act in time.

Georgia administrative (not criminal) DUI license suspension. The officer took my driver license and gave me a form telling me options to either appeal an administrative license suspension or install an ignition interlock device. You MUST do this within 30 days after your arrest.

Our 3 award-winning legal book authors on Georgia DUI defense are AVAILABLE 24 hours a day 7 days a week, so CALL NOW. For your FREE consultation on this vital step to try to salvage your ability to drive. 404-567-5515. We can act immediately to help you protect your ability to keep driving if you reach us within that 30-day period — even on weekends or holidays.

Under the Georgia implied consent law, police are authorized to seize the plastic license of a DUI suspect who refuses the post-arrest breath alcohol or blood alcohol test. Only 30 days exist to either appeal or opt for the ignition interlock device under OCGA 40-5-64.1.

What must I do to save my right to drive? Implied consent laws call for lawfully arrested DUI drivers to agree to the post-arrest testing. A new GA DUI law 2019 was put into law April 28, 2019, relating to the implied consent warning.

Requesting a hearing within 30 days after your arrest for DUI. So, now a breath, blood or urine test can be requested, but a DUI refusal of the forensic breath alcohol test cannot be used against you in court. Note that ignition interlocks are usually only installed when a driver is charged with refusal to submit to post-arrest testing, for alcohol or drugs.

Georgia Law on DUI. Being “over the legal limit” of 0.08 grams percent (for any driver) is called DUI per se. In addition, the State of Georgia can prosecute without a breath test, blood test or urine test, if circumstantial evidence is sufficient to convince a jury that it was less safe for the person to drive by consuming alcohol to the extent of being unsafe on the highway.

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Our three law partners have amassed over 33 annual Super Lawyer' recognitions. The rating service was launched in GA in 2004.

Fighting a DUI in Atlanta Georgia. Most are shocked that police take you to JAIL on a GA DUI 1st offense, regardless of the case circumstances. The same rule as the Georgia DUI process applies, generally, under DUI-DWI laws in most states.

Knowing how to Beat a DUI in the State of Georgia. However, many with a DUI Georgia first offense are shocked at the severity of the DUI penalty Georgia DUI laws 2024 might bring. Just the potential jail time for DUI in Georgia is a much bigger concern that probation and court costs.

DUI charges in Georgia. Drinking and driving laws in Georgia and staying within the Georgia BAC limit. Most are even more shocked to learn that field sobriety tests were OPTIONAL, and that they did not have to agree to doing these. Reports of self-loathing, sleeplessness, inability to eat, not focusing on their job and discord on their domestic relationships are common.

DUI consequences Georgia. Other than first worrying about a potential 24 hours in jail, clients stress even more about NOT being able to operate a motor vehicle. This is their #2 question our attorneys hear from most accused impaired drivers, for DUI cases in Georgia.

Only a small fraction of first offenders will have any additional DUI jail time, for the cases our lawyers near me handle in Georgia. Second, if our lawyers protect your right to drive from being administratively suspended for 12 full months, all adult age drivers licensed in GA can qualify for a limited driving permit that lasts 120 days, and then obtain your full Georgia license back after taking the DUI school course and paying a reinstatement fee.

Hiring Experience Legal Counsel to Negotiate GA DUI laws 2024 to avoid Georgia DUI consequences. Next, our objective is to use our superior knowledge of DUI laws in Georgia to guide the ship through the troubled waters created by this pending DUI arrest.

Do you lose your license for first D.U.I. in Georgia? Yes, you do. Since driving under the influence (a DUI Atlanta GA) will result in a license revocation or suspension in ALL cases, fighting for a non-DUI disposition is our objective in every case.

Worst of all, though, is the lifetime conviction that can never be removed from your criminal history. Georgia’s expungement laws do NOT apply to any DUI convictions, even a first offence DUI. Trust the 3 Super Lawyers who WRITE the leading DUI law book for the State of Georgia, on this issue!

The Georgia DUI Trial Practice Manual 2023 edition. This is Georgia's leading treatise on DUI laws in Georgia. The book is co-authored by our three partners, who are all Georgia Super Lawyers.

What Is Considered a DUI in Georgia?

The DUI less safe OCGA statute covers various types of DUI. For all drivers under age 21, a Georgia zero tolerance policy zero tolerance law is applicable. Thus, with even a negligible quantity of alcohol (0.02 grams percent or more) the State can prosecute that underage driver. CMV (commercial motor vehicle) operators are held to a 0.04 grams percent or more, when behind the wheel of an 18-wheeler of other commercial vehicle or bus.

So, within 30 days after arrest on a DUI charge, that driver must either file an appeal with the Georgia Department of Driver Services for an administrative license suspension hearing to be able to keep driving. Under new Georgia DUI laws in 2017, some first offenders can now install an ignition interlock device for a full year. Failure to immediately address this administrative implied consent license suspension is a costly and damaging blow to your chances of the best-case outcome, for those who fail to act

In the State of Georgia, ignition interlocks are usually only installed when a driver is charged with refusal to submit to post-arrest testing, which can totally suspend ALL driving privileges for a full 12 months. Do NOT make an uninformed decision on this important issue without getting a FREE consultation with one of our DUI lawyer GA specialists.

Georgia DUI Lawyer William Head Created This Helpful DUI Chart Georgia

This chart and the legal advice within this page comes from Board Certified DUI lawyer near me, William C. Head, Criminal Defense Lawyer near me and DUI Lawyer Atlanta, the Man Who Wrote the Book on DUI Laws in GA.

GA DUI Law, DUI Penalties and DUI consequences Infographic showing first offense DUI, 2nd DUI in GA, 3rd DUI offense and 4th DUI felony in Georgia.

More Information About Our Three Award-Winning Legal Book Authors and DUI Defense Attorneys

With 4 metro Atlanta DUI law offices, our criminal law attorneys near me in Georgia travel statewide to help citizens accused of impaired driving. Call today for your FREE lawyer consultation at 404-567-5515.

Our DUI defense lawyers always provide a FREE legal consultation to help calm potential clients’ worries. This is done by outlining a step-by-step game plan for protecting our client’s right to drive and covering all the potential pitfalls that inaction and lack of familiarity with Georgia Law can cause.

Partner Larry Kohn is one of the NATION’S most ''reviewed'' criminal law attorneys, with AVVO. He is also rated by Best Law Firms in America and Best Lawyers in America.

DUI lawyer Atlanta Larry Kohn has been with criminal attorney and Board-Certified DUI attorney Bubba Head since 1996. Ex-cop turned DUI lawyer Atlanta Cory Yager has been part of the criminal justice, legal services team since 2008.

After over 10,000 cases handled over 89 collective years of legal service, what more can you ask for? Our lawyers for DUI near me have 4 criminal law offices near me for your convenience: Sandy Springs, Marietta, Alpharetta, and downtown Atlanta. Beyond our Fulton County and Marietta (Cobb County) location, our attorneys for DUI can reach Gwinnett County and DeKalb CoCnty in about 30 minutes.

CONTACT US NOW to discover HOW TO PRESERVE YOUR DRIVING PRIVILEGES! It is a FREE call, so what are you waiting for? 404-567-5515.

Additional links:

DUI Georgia Felony Information, Which Can Bring Up to 5 Years in Prison

Georgi Zero Tolerance Law for Those Under 21 Years of Age

Where Can I See the DUI Fines in GA?

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