A DUI Charge is Very Serious
And the severity of the punishment for a conviction of a driving under the influence conviction increases depending on how many DUIs a person has received in the past. A first-offense DUI is treated differently than a third-offense DUI.
In Tennessee one is considered a multiple offender if no more than ten years have elapsed between the date of the present violation and the date of any preceding convictions for driving under the influence. If you are a multiple offender, you are subject to harsher penalties under the statute.
For a first-time offender it is a one-year loss of license. For a second-time offender it is a two-year loss of license. However, a third driving under the influence conviction is a six-year loss of license.
A person convicted of a DUI which ended with a license revocation has the ability to request a restricted license. In order to do this one must apply to the trial judge or a judge of any court in the person’s county of residence having jurisdiction to try charges for driving under the influence for a restricted driver license. If the judge approves the restricted license application, the judge may also order the person to install and keep an ignition interlock device as a condition of probation depending on the individual factors of the particular case such as: blood alcohol concentration at time of arrest, presence of minors during time of arrest, if there was a traffic accident caused by the accused, violation of the implied consent law, etc.
One is not eligible for a restricted license if he or she has a prior conviction for the offense of vehicular assault, aggravated vehicular assault, vehicular homicide, aggravated vehicular homicide; or seriously injured or killed another person in the course of the conduct that resulted in the driver’s conviction for driving under the influence or a similar offense in another state.
A 6-year license revocation is very serious and can have many negative implications and hardships. Therefore, it is very important to hire an experienced criminal defense attorney to help you navigate through the uncertainty.
If you found this useful, you might also like the article titled “Can a first offense DUI be dismissed?” for more information.