The second-offense DUI charges are also class 1 misdemeanors, and therefore they also are heard at the Loudoun County General District Court, which is located at 18 East Market Street in Leesburg, Virginia. If you have been charged it is important you seek legal representation from a Loudoun County DUI lawyer as soon as possible, as the penalties for a second charge are often harsher than they were for a first offense. A DUI lawyer will be able to look at the facts and circumstance surrounding your case and develop a defense that is right for you.
Call today to discuss your case and how to proceed, and read below to learn more about how second offense charges are treated in Loudoun County and other parts of Virginia.
Similar to prosecutors, judges who are doling out sentences view second offenses very seriously, perhaps even more seriously than prosecutors. As a second offense, the judge will review the facts of the case and see that the person has a prior history of DUI-related offenses.
They will understand that the person has come before the court again after being before the court on a similar matter. Therefore they will need to impose some sort of penalty to try to deter future actions. It often means that a second-offense DUI often results in substantially more jail time, higher fines, or additional penalties.
For a first-time DUI offense, there is no mandatory minimum period of incarceration unless the BAC level is above 0.15. There’s only a mandatory minimum fine of $250. For a second offense, however, the minimum fine doubles and the mandatory period of incarceration is up to ten days for a offense occurring 5-10 years after the first offense, 20 days when the offense is within 5 years. There are potentially additional mandatory minimum penalties for elevated BAC results.
For a second-offense DUI conviction in Loudoun County, your license will be suspended by the court for a period of three years. If this offense occurred within 5-10 years of the prior offense, you’ll be eligible for a restricted license after four months.
However, if the offense occurred within five years of the initial offense, you will not be able to procure a restricted license until you wait for at least one year. Regardless of the amount of time, you’ll need to have ignition interlock installed on the vehicle for the duration of the suspension period.
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