New Hampshire DWI/DUI: Penalties and Criminal Charge Defense

The penalties and fines imposed under New Hampshire DWI/DUI Laws for driving while intoxicated or driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs arrest  can put a serious strain on your finances as well as your life.  Because a DUI is considered to be such a serious crime by most states, it is imperative that you understand what can potentially happen if you are arrested for or charged with a DUI and are convicted in a court of law.  So, what are the penalties for a DUI in the state of New Hampshire, and are there any potential defenses against these charges that will hold up in a court of law and help you get your life back on track after such an arrest?

DWI/DUI Penalties in New Hampshire

The New Hampshire DUI laws involve two different types of first offenses. 

• There is the standard first DUI offense, which is considered to be a Class B misdemeanor, a fairly low level crime.  The penalties for this are fines between $500 and $1200, a potential driver’s license suspension of between 90 days and two years, and a special insurance known as SR-22 insurance for a period of three years.  
• A higher level first offense, known as aggravated DUI, exists in New Hampshire, and the penalties for this offense, which is a class A or higher level misdemeanor, as $750 to $2000 in fines, ten days to one year in jail, and license suspension of 18 months to up to two years in the maximum cases.  In addition, you will also need the special insurance for three years after the conviction.

Subsequent DUI convictions, any time within the next two to ten years after your initial DUI conviction, carry even harsher penalties. 

• While the fines stay the same, and are capped at a maximum of $2000 per offense, the potential for increased prison time, as well as mandatory prison time that cannot be waived or set aside, becomes more and more likely.  
• In addition, you may find that you are unable to get car insurance and your license will be suspended for increasingly longer periods of time as your convictions add up.

Defenses to DUI

Defending against a DUI in New Hampshire involves proving either that your conviction was faulty, such as through an unlawful traffic stop, or that the roadside or other sobriety testing done on you was incomplete or incorrectly done.  If you are able to prove any of these things with the help of a good DUI attorney, you may be able to avoid the problems that surround a New Hampshire DUI conviction.

Getting Help

Your best bet for having a decent outcome from a DWI/DUI charge is to get help. A lawyer can assist you in understanding the penalties you face and in fighting the charges against you.