Charge: OUI Refusal
Mandatory Minimum Penalty: 4 days jail; $600 fine; 275 day loss of license PLUS an additional 150 day loss of license if convicted of the OUI in criminal court for a total of 14 months!
Maximum Penalty: 364 days jail; $2,000.00 fine; 14 months loss of license OR greater at judge’s discretion
Summary: Client was stopped for erratic driving and speeding. When stopped, client had difficulty retrieving her documents. She was asked to perform field sobriety tests and performed poorly. Client was arrested for OUI and ultimately refused to submit to a breath test.
Result: OUI Refusal charge was dismissed in return for a plea of guilty to Driving to Endanger. Client paid a fine of $575.00 and served a 30-day license suspension. No jail was imposed in this case. This is one of those cases where my relationship with the prosecutor played a bigger role than the actual facts of the case. The facts in this case were clear, my client appeared to be impaired and did in fact refuse to take a breath test. The officer did everything correctly and thankfully, so did the client when she decided to get me involved to defend her against the charges.
