FIRST OFFENSE OUI:

Being arrested for operating under the influence can cause a tremendous disruption to your family life and employment. Whether it is a fist offense OUI or a subsequent OUI offense, you need to know your options and what to expect before you make any decision about how to handle your case.

1. Whether the police had a valid reason to stop your car.
2. Whether the police had a valid reason to order you out of your car.
3. Whether any so-called field sobriety tests ("FST's") administered to you were given properly.
4. Whether any statements made by you can be suppressed.
5. If a breathalyzer was given, whether it was administered properly and whether the machine was properly functioning.

If you refused to take the breath test and this is a first offense, the Registry of Motor Vehicles will suspend your license for 180 days.

If you have taken the breath test with a reading of .08 or above, the Registry of Motor Vehicles will take your license for 30 days.

If you refused the breath test, under the OUI statute, you are entitled to a hearing to challenge your refusal suspension. You want to take advantage of this hearing.

• You have 15 days from the date of your arrest to appeal your license suspension.
• The Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles does not give work or daytime licenses for breath test refusal or breath test failure suspensions.  You either get the license back completely or not at all.
• The first step is at the RMV where a brief hearing is conducted.  The hearing is frequently denied but it is a necessary step in the procedure.
• Assuming the RMV denies the hearing appeal, the second step is to petition the district court where you were arraigned to reverse the Registrar's decision.  (This is where your attorney has the opportunity to get your license back).
• The appeal is somewhat technical in nature.  When you were brought back to the police station after your arrest and booked, the officer or trooper is supposed to complete some forms pursuant to the procedures set forth by the police department and the Registrar.  This paperwork is sometimes not completed in the proper form or not completed at all.  You should not try to this appeal on your own, you need a lawyer who has experience in Massachusetts OUI laws and who knows how the Registry of Motor Vehicles works and what to look for in the forms.

You have 2 options when charged with OUI. You either plea/admit to the charges or you can fight the case.

If you take a plea, you will likely receive a standard first offenders disposition. Every case is different and you may receive additional conditions of probation that are not listed below.

The standard first offender disposition includes:

• A continuance without a finding (CWOF) sentence. This is a non-conviction disposition. It essentially means that you are put on probation for a defined period of time. If you successfully complete this periOd, the case is dismissed. However, note that if you are charged against with OUI, even if the first case is dismissed after a CWOF, then the RMV will still treat a second arrest and disposition as a subsequent offense.
• You will receive 1 year probation.
• Fees and fines will be around $1,380.
• An additional license suspension of 45-90 days. Note: A refusal suspension does not run CONCURRENT with any conviction or admission suspension.
• You may be eligible for a hardship license, 12-hour license seven days a week. Should you decide to retain my services, I will help you get a hardship license.
• A Commercial Drivers License (CDL) will be taken for 1 year.

If you fight your case and win, upon order of the Court your license will be restored.

If you fight your case and lose, the penalties will likely be the same as above. The only difference is that if you lose after trial, you will receive a conviction.