What Is the Punishment for a Third DUI in Michigan?
Michigan made a significant change to its drunk-driving law in 2007 -- it eliminated the 10-year "look back" period for drunk-driving convictions. Prior to 2007, the third conviction had to take place within 10 years of the first to trigger harsher penalties. Now, a third conviction brings harsher penalties regardless of how much time has passed. If someone is injured or killed, you can face up to 15 years in prison.
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Legal Terms
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The Michigan Vehicle Code uses the term OWI, operating while intoxicated, instead of DUI. Michigan does not use the term "driving under the influence" or "DUI." It uses the terms Operating While Visibly Impaired (OWVI) or Operating While Intoxicated (OWI).
OWVI, the lesser of the two offenses, means your ability to drive was impaired because of alcohol or drugs. OWI means you are not able to drive safely because of drugs or alcohol. A blood alcohol content of 0.08 percent or higher is legal proof of intoxication in Michigan.
Penalties
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If you are convicted of OWI for a third time in Michigan, you face a fine of $500 to $5,000 and either one to five years in prison, or a period of probation with 30 days to a year in jail.
Your driver's license will be revoked for a minimum of five years and the license plate on the car you were driving will be confiscated, regardless of whether or not you own the car. If and when you get your license back, you will have to pay a $1,000 "driver responsibility fee" for two consecutive years.
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Injuries or Death
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If you are involved in a crash in which someone is injured, and it is your third OWI conviction, you can be imprisoned for up to five years, fined $1,000 to $5,000, or both. That's in addition to losing your license and paying extra fees.
If you cause someone's death, you can be sentenced to 15 years in prison, fined $2,500 to $10,000, or both.
If you kill an emergency responder -- a police officer, firefighter or ambulance crew member, for example -- you face a fine of $2,500 to $10,000 and up to 20 years in prison.
Habitual Alcohol Offender
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If you are deemed to be a habitual alcohol offender -- as you will be after a second conviction -- you must apply for a hearing before the Driver Assessment and Appeal Division to have your license reinstated. A substance abuse evaluation must be submitted before the hearing can be scheduled.
The burden will then be on you to prove that your substance abuse problem -- if you have one -- is under control, that you pose a minimal risk of driving drunk again, and that you have both the ability and motivation to drive safely and within the law.
You will have to prove that you have been alcohol- and drug-free for at least six months -- and as long as 12 months -- at the time of the hearing. You will need to prove 12 months of abstinence if your blood alcohol content was 0.20 percent or higher at the time of your arrest; if you have had three or more convictions of substance abuse-related offenses; if you have relapsed after trying to get a substance abuse problem under control; or if you have been diagnosed by a professional as alcohol- or drug-dependent.
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