Question: I got another DUI, this time in Alpharetta. I never thought I’d get another one, but this past weekend I made a mistake and didn’t take an Uber, like I usually do. Now I’m worried about what trouble my second DUI will cause. I mean, I’m worried about heavy punishments and I need a local DUI lawyer.
The police got me for speeding. The Alpharetta cop said I was doing almost 30 miles per hour over the speed limit. The officer called me a menace and asked if I’d been drinking. I drank just 3 margaritas, that’s all. The cop asked I was an alcoholic. He said the three drinks had a load of booze and that he suspected I was drunk.
It didn’t help that I stumbled when I got out of the car and that I think I sounded drunk, but that was from my cold. I always sound drunk when I get a stuffed nose. I did the tests he asked and I took the breath test, because if you don’t you get your license suspended, I think.
The breath test on the street, I don’t know how I did. The one at the jail was .121. Which is over the legal limit of .08, I get that.
Like I said, this isn’t my first drunk driving charge. My first was in Sandy Springs almost three years ago. That one was rough because I was pretty buzzed. But that’s when I was young and stupid. Now I got a job, a wife and a kid. Well at least my girlfriend calls herself my wife.
So I’m going to need some help understanding what can happen to me for a second DUI. I mean, is it much worse than a first DUI?
I really can’t miss much work and I don’t want to do much jail time, although I figure I have to do some. I just need to do some damage control so I didn’t get screwed.
D.K. in Cumming, GA
Answer: Certainly, you want to get as few DUI charges as possible. Unfortunately, however, DUI is just a fact of life for many people. And there are many people who get charged with more than one DUI over the years. In fact, getting more than one DUI is really not uncommon. As DUI attorneys, we see it every day. And we many help people who have multiple DUIs.
Over the years, law enforcement, encouraged by groups like Mother’s Against Drunk Driving (MADD), has prioritized DUI and dramatically increased arrests of people suspected of driving drunk.
Under Georgia law each successive DUI incurs increased punishments. Jail time, community service hours and fines, among other things, increase with each additional DUI.
The formal “look back” period under Georgia law is 10 years for DUI. And many jurisdictions, but not all, will increase punishments for DUI charges that are even more than 10 years old.