What Are My Pre-Trial Limited Driving Privileges for a DWI Charge?

Most people are allowed limited driving privileges to drive to work or school, even if convicted of DWI.

If you need to drive for employment, education, or merely take care of your family, you’ll need a work license or a limited driving privilege. This will come as no surprise to anyone who has already lost their driver’s license. Most people charged with DWI want to know if we can assist them in getting a work permit and if they will be able to drive if they are convicted. Our team of Asheville DWI lawyers can obtain driving privileges for all of our qualified clients regularly.

Depending on the circumstances, limited driving privileges, or LDPs, are classified as pre-trial, post-conviction, or refusal. It’s crucial to remember that you’re driving on a restricted license rather than a regular driver’s license if you have a limited driving permit. You can only drive with the LDP for defined purposes, such as work or school. It’s also worth noting that a limited driving privilege is also known as an LDP, a work license, or a driving privilege and that the phrases are interchangeable.

All restricted license categories have comparable guidelines for limited driving privileges, outlined below the working privilege qualifications.

Driving Privileges During the Pre-Trial Period

You are automatically revoked for 30 days if you were charged with DWI and blew 0.08 or more on the EC/IR II (breath test). You may be eligible for limited driving privileges after the tenth day of revocation. The following are the general prerequisites for restricted driving privileges:

  • You must have held a valid driver’s license when you were stopped.
  • Within the previous seven (7) years, you must not have been convicted of driving while inebriated.
  • You can’t have been charged with another DWI since the one for which your license was revoked.
  • You must show proof of insurance, precisely a DL 123 form.
  • You’ll need proof that you’ve had a substance abuse evaluation. Contact us for details.
  • Make a $100 payment to the clerk of court.

It’s vital to remember that a pre-trial release is only effective for 30 days after you’ve been charged with DWI. Your limited license will expire after that, and you will need to pay a $50 restoration fee to get your regular driver’s license reinstated. If your license is reinstated, you will keep it unless and until it is revoked for a conviction, at which point you will be eligible for a driving privilege again.

Driving Privileges After a Trial

If you want to get a driver’s license after a DWI conviction, you must meet all of the requirements for the pre-trial privilege. If you blow 0.15 or higher on the breath test, you must install an interlock device in your vehicle and lose your license for 45 days without the possibility of privileges before you can reapply. You will be ineligible for any privileges for a year if you are convicted of a level I or II DWI.

In Refusal Cases, Driving Privileges

The DMV will tell you that your license will be canceled for a year if you refuse to take the breath test. There will be no chance of getting a driver’s license for the initial six-month period.

You will be legally allowed to apply for a limited driving privilege after the first six months, but the Department of Motor Vehicles will decide whether or not to give it.

Information About Driving Privileges in General

Monday through Friday, limited driving privileges are available from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. To drive for work or school before 6 am or after 8 pm, you’ll need a letter from your boss or a school timetable that explains why and when you need to drive. A letter on your own letterhead will usually be enough if you are self-employed.

We can assist you if your license has been suspended due to a DWI and you require a driving privilege. Please get in touch with us right away to discuss your matter in greater detail.

Call Our Asheville DWI Lawyers

An individual charged with driving while intoxicated (DWI) in North Carolina has their license suspended for 30 days. This is referred to as a “Civil Revocation” and lasts for 30 days. If the defendant attempts to operate a motor vehicle during this time, they will be charged with Driving While License Revoked.

There are no exceptions to this regulation during the first ten (10) days of the program’s implementation. The defendant may petition the court on the 10th day for a Limited Driving Privilege, which would be valid for the remaining twenty (20) days of their sentence. The defendant must complete specific requirements and perform a number of actions to have their license reinstated to be considered eligible.

The defendant should obtain a substance abuse assessment from a local service provider first. After that, the defendant must get a DL-123 form from their insurance company. A third requirement is for the defendant to procure a driving record for the previous seven (7) years to demonstrate that there have been no past DWI charges and that they now possess an active driving permit.

Once these formalities have been completed, the defendant may petition the court to restore their driving privilege; nevertheless, the decision to grant or deny the petition is entirely at the judge’s discretion. Upon approval of the petition, a judge’s order will be required to be signed, and a $100 re-application fee will need to be paid to the clerk for the license to be reinstated.

Please contact our Asheville DUI lawyers for a consultation if you have been charged with a DWI. We’ll fight your case with all of the resources we have at our disposal.

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