The First Offense

In Texas, the severity of the DUI penalty is directly related to how many previous offenses you have had and can change depending on your age and whether you were using a CDL. If you have never been convicted of a DUI before, the best outcome you can hope for is three days in jail, a fine of less than $2,000, and a 90-day license suspension.

The Second Offense

If this is your second offense, a good attorney might be able to get you 30 days in jail, a fine of less than $4,000, a license suspension of up to 180 days, and the installation of an interlock device on your car. Once you start racking up multiple offenses, judges tend to come down hard and, unlike some other states, it doesn't matter how long ago your last offense was. Texas considers any DUI offense you've ever had!

The Third Offense

By the time you hit the third offense, you could be looking at 2 years in prison, up to $10,000 in fines, up to 2 years of license suspension, and the installation of an interlock device on your car. The penalties for DUI in Texas are harsh and are dealt out with surprising regularity. For this reason, the best piece of advice any attorney can give you is to not drink and drive. While it is possible to get off entirely, it happens once in a blue moon and, as you can see, even the lightest sentences can have a huge impact on your life, your job, and your family. 

3 Different Legal Limits

Texas, just like most other states, has 3 different legal limits that could get you into serious trouble, depending on who you are. The most common blood alcohol content is the famous .08. This limit applies to anyone 21 years or older who is not operating a vehicle with a CDL. For people below the age of 21, blowing a .02 is enough to get you hit with DUI penalties, and for people operating a vehicle under a CDL, your legal limit is .04. The DUI/DWI penalties will kick in as soon as someone reaches the lowest legal limit that applies to them.

How Many Drinks?

Now, most people don't set out to blow past the legal BAC. For most people, it sneaks up on them. For this reason, it is a good idea to know about how many drinks it takes for someone to end up in trouble. Since the amount of alcohol required to reach the legal limit is dependent upon gender and weight, it is probably best to use the average weight of both genders. For females, the average weight is 156 pounds and for someone that size, it usually only takes 3 or 4 drinks to blow a .08. For men, the average weight is 196 pounds and it usually only takes 3 to 5 drinks to blow a .08. As you can see, it can sneak up on you pretty easily. 

One great way to make sure you don't go over your drink limit is to stop drinking at one drink before you are likely to blow a .08. If, however, you do go over your legal limit, make sure to speak with a criminal defense attorney in Houston, TX, about your options.