A DUI Washington state charge will be assessed to any person operating any type of motor vehicle during a period of time when he or she is under the influence of any intoxicating substance. Intoxicating substances include alcohol or any drug, both illegal and prescription. The legal limit in Washington State for blood alcohol content, or BAC, is the normal 0.08 percent, however there may be another charge that applies to DUI cases.
Physical Control
When a person is proven by law enforcement to be in actual and physical control of any type of motor vehicle while he or she is under the influence of an intoxicating liquor or substance, the individual may be assessed a Physical Control charge in accompaniment to the DUI charge. This charge can be similar to the DUI charge in both charge type and penalty, and in most cases the DUI penalty information is concurrent with Physical Control charges.
License Suspension and/or Revocation
When an individual is convicted of either a DUI or Physical Control offense while in Washington State, the DOL in Washington is entitled to the administrative decision to either suspend your license for a term less than a year, or revoke your license for anywhere from 1 year to 5. In most cases, the Washington State DOL will choose to freeze your driver’s license privileges if:
- You were asked to give a blood sample or breath sample for testing the alcohol content of your blood stream and refused
- You agreed to take either of the tests and your blood alcohol content proved to be above the legal limit of 0.08%
In either of these occurrences, your driver’s license privileges will automatically be either revoked or suspended, depending on the decision made by the Washington State DOL. This decision will be both made and enforced within 60 days of your arrest. It is your responsibility to apply for an administrative court hearing to appeal or contest the decision of revocation or suspension.
The determined length of your license revocation or suspension will depend upon whether you failed the blood alcohol content testing or refused it, what your test reading was and whether or not you have a record of driving under the influence with the Washington State DOL. It should also be known that anyone who refuses a BAC test at the time of arrest will receive a longer term of revocation or suspension than someone who allows testing and fails. You should also know in this circumstance that the decision made by the DOL to administratively suspend your license is held in completely separate regard from any criminal charges you may be facing.
Getting Help
If you face DUI Washington state charges, it is important that you get an experienced attorney involved as soon as possible. A good lawyer can explain all your options to you regarding how you want to handle your DUI charges.
