Know Your Rights: What to Do When Pulled Over in Texas

Consequences for a Texas DWI Can Be Very Serious

Texas considers driving while intoxicated to be a serious offense, even if this is the driver’s first DWI charge. The minimum penalties, as well as possible steeper penalties that can be imposed by a judge, reflect this. In some instances, additional factors make the offense and those potential penalties even worse. An individual who has been charged with DWI along with additional charges or aggravating factors needs professional legal assistance to prevent the worst consequences.

Perhaps the worst negative effect of driving after drinking is to cause an accident that results in a severe injury or fatality to another person, or more than one person. In some instances, the person is a passenger in the drunk driver’s vehicle. In many instances, a different vehicle is involved in the collision. An intoxicated driver who accidentally causes severe injury to someone is charged with intoxication assault. If the person’s injuries were fatal, the charge is intoxication manslaughter. These are felonies, each with minimum incarceration of two years. A judge can order a person convicted of intoxication assault to 10 years in prison. The maximum for the manslaughter conviction is 20 years.

Some DWI-related charges are less serious, but still pose the possibility of harsh sentencing. If a passenger age 14 or younger was in the car when the driver was pulled over, a DWI conviction may include a conviction of felony child endangerment. The normal first-offense DWI would not necessarily have unusually serious penalties, but that additional conviction could result in a two-year prison sentence, even if no accident occurred. A judge can levy a maximum financial penalty of $10,000. Now the driver must figure out how to pay that steep fine, which may take years of payments to accomplish.

Even without these additional factors, a conviction of DWI for the first time can be expensive and can cost the person his or her freedom for a lengthy time. A judge may impose a maximum financial penalty of $2,000 and a maximum jail sentence of 180 days. It becomes clear why hiring a law firm such as Vinas & Graham is crucial when dealing with DWI charges.

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