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January, 25 2013 admin Blog
The penalties for drinking and driving are serious. The New York Department of Motor Vehicles reports these grim statistics:
Drunk driving’s impact on society is great – hurting the innocent victims of inebriated drivers, and the drivers themselves. The economic and social impacts are a secondary burden.
Drunk driving is a criminal offense, so you’ll likely be arrested and then go to court to face a criminal law judge. New York prosecutes those who commit the following crimes:
Arrest & conviction
Upon arrest for an alcohol-related driving offense in New York, your license will automatically be suspended. Your license will remain suspended until your case is disposed. If convicted, the minimum license suspension is six months retroactive to your date of arrest.
As a first offense, and assuming no accident or chemical breath test refusal on your part, you may be offered a “deal” by the DA that involves a plea to a traffic infraction for driving while impaired. The punishment will vary but will include a program, some fines, and a license suspension, but hopefully no jail time. Although such a plea is considered a violation of the law, rather than a “crime”, this disposition of the case will be discoverable by your employers. Furthermore, such a plea has vast consequences if you are re-arrested in the future for the same type of offense, which will likely result in the DA’s taking a hard-line stance requesting jail time.
A conviction for an alcohol-related driving offense will remain on your New York driving record for 10 years.