If you were recently arrested for driving under the influence (DUI) in Orange County, you may be unsure about when exactly your license suspension starts. A lot of people are confused by the timing of the license suspension and how their criminal DUI case impacts their driving privileges.
For our purposes, we’re going to assume that you were arrested for DUI, and at the time of your arrest, your blood alcohol concentration (BAC) registered at .08% or above. With that in mind, you’re probably wondering, “Was my driver’s license suspended automatically upon arrest? Or, will it be suspended 30 days following my arrest?” Read on as we answer these questions.
You Were Served the Pink Temporary License
If you were arrested for an alcohol-related DUI for suspicion of a .08% BAC or higher, the arresting officer most likely served you with a pink temporary license. If that’s the case, you were given a notice stating that 30 days after the date of your arrest, your license will be suspended administratively for a four-month period.
The DMV license suspension is separate from the court case. If you do not request the DMV hearing within 10 days of the arrest and they confiscate your license, the hard suspension will begin 30 days following the arrest, whether or not the DA files criminal charges. The hard suspension is independent of any license suspension related to a criminal court conviction for DUI.
If your California DUI arrest was more than 30 days ago and it was an alcohol-related DUI with a BAC of .08% or higher and you failed to request a DMV hearing, your license has probably already been suspended.
If you’re in this predicament, the best thing for you to do is contact an Orange County DUI attorney from our firm. If your license has been suspended already, there are steps that need to be taken to get a restricted license after the 30-day “hard” suspension, plus you’ll want to fight your DUI charges. In order to obtain a restricted license to drive to and from work, you are required to enroll in the appropriate DUI Program, and you must obtain an SR-22 certificate from your auto insurance carrier.
Board Certified in DUI defense, Attorney Landry is one of OC’s top DUI attorneys. Call (949) 694-8804 to schedule your free case evaluation!