Colorado DUI/DWAI: Penalties and Criminal Charge Defense

The state of Colorado, like all other states, employs a basis set of Colorado DUI/DWAI laws dictating that driving with a blood alcohol concentration at or above .08 is illegal (DUI), as well as driving with a BAC at or higher than .05 is also illegal (DWAI). Alongside the basic DUI/DWAI charge in Colorado, associated criminal charges include violations under implied consent laws (refusals to submit), zero tolerance violations (minors with BAC at or higher than .02), and charges associated with elevated BAC (at or higher than .17) or other elevating factors. The following outlines only the penalties associated with simple DUI/DWAI violations in the state of Colorado.

Colorado DUI/DWAI Charges and Associated Penalties

• First offense DWAI (driving while ability impaired, or with blood alcohol content of .05, but not more than .08), includes penalties of incarceration of two (2) days to one hundred and eighty (180) days, fines of not more than $500, eight (8) points applied to driver’s license, and community service requirements

• Second offense DWAI, or second offense within five (5) years of last conviction, carries penalties of ninety (90) days to one (1) year incarceration, fines of up to $1,500, mandatory license suspension of one (1) year, additional twelve (12) points on driver’s license, and community service requirements

• First offense DUI (driving under the influence with BAC at or above .08) carries penalties of five (5) days to no more than one (1) year of incarceration, fines of not more than $1,000, license suspension of at least nine (9) months, twelve (12) points applied to license, and public service requirements

• Second offense DUI, if within five (5) years of prior DUI conviction, carries penalties of ninety (90) days to one (1) year of incarceration, fines of not more than $1,500, license suspension of one (1) year, required use of ignition interlock device following license reinstatement, and public service requirements.

The penalties applicable in your specific case, however, will hinge on a number of factors, including jurisdiction of arrest, previous criminal history, history of substance abuse, complications with prosecutor’s case, age of offender, and a slew of other case-specific issues, which only a criminal defense attorney can decipher on behalf of an individual client.

Colorado DUI/DWAI Defense Options

In virtually all DUI/DWAI cases, conviction will hinge upon proving impairment of the driver, or that the driver was operating a vehicle with an illegal per se limit. In any case, probing and questioning the legality and accuracy of any sample used to determine the blood alcohol concentration of an offender is critical. This may mean looking into the legality of the initial traffic stop and any ensuing questioning or search by law enforcement, or in other cases, scrutinizing the accuracy of the testing devices used in building evidence against a defendant.

Getting Legal Help with Preventing a Colorado DUI/DWAI Conviction

In reality, each DUI/DWAI defense hinges on critical case-specific elements, which can only be exploited by the defendant, if reviewed by a criminal defense lawyer with experience in handling Colorado DUI/DWI cases. For more information and insight about your criminal case, including whether any viable DUI/DWI defense strategies may be employed in your specific case, consult with a criminal defense lawyer to learn more.