If your spouse has recently been arrested for a DUI, you may be facing many emotions. Feelings of confusion, anger, hurt, sympathy and various others may be going through your mind. This can be a strenuous time for your relationship in addition to each of you as individuals. If this is your partner’s first offense, there is no need to panic! The penalties for a first time offense are not nearly as severe as those for a repeat offender. If your spouse has received multiple DUIs, things may be a bit more complicated. The most important thing to remember is to remain calm and find the best way to support your spouse.
First Steps
Upon learning that your spouse has been charged with a DUI, you might need some time to process the information. However, once you have taken that time it is important to talk to your spouse. Though it is an unfortunate situation, there is nothing that you can do to change the past so it is time to focus on the present and future. Talking to your partner about how and why the DUI occurred is a good place to start. This way, you can start working on a resolution that is best for both of you. You both may want to talk about how you will handle the situation. You should discuss the possibility of hiring an attorney, and how you will pay for one. Additionally, if there will be heavy court fees, you should discuss how you will pay for those as well.
Supporting Your Partner
It is important to support your partner no matter what happens. However, support will mean different things in different situations. The best thing for your loved one might be to go to a rehab center at this time. If this is the case, you need to help your loved one get there. If they face jail time, try to find a way to make this easier for both of you. This will include discussing visitation, as it is generally very possible to see your partner while they are serving a sentence.
If you require two substantial incomes to support yourselves and your family, the court may grant your spouse a work permit so that their job will not be greatly affected by a suspended license. If this is not an option for your spouse, it is important to talk about how you, your friends, and your family can take turns driving your spouse around. Taking on too much at once may cause you to become angry and bitter towards your spouse which will only make matters worse.
Counseling Course
Your spouse may be required by the court to attend a counseling course about their DUI. Many of these programs allow family members to be present. If your spouse would like you to attend, it is important to love and support them by attending. If your partner has a drinking problem, it is important that you help them find a resolution for the issue at hand.
Receiving a DUI can be an embarrassing and difficult process to go through. It can affect not only you, but your loved ones as well. Dealing with a DUI can put a strain on your financial resources as well as your emotional well being. If you are a parent who has received a DUI, the DUI impact on your children can be extremely difficult. In order to help them throughout this process, there are some things that you should know.
If your child faces a DUI charge, you probably feel shocked. You may have feelings of anger, concern, or helplessness. While these feelings are normal, it is important to consider what your kid is going through since this arrest has occurred. They have followed the same arrest procedures as serious criminals and probably feels scared or worried. Your child may have been in a jail holding sell. They need your guidance at this time. Yes, a mistake happened. But now you have to to focus on what to do to remedy that mistake.
DUI Impact on Your Children
A DUI conviction can affect your children in many different ways. If you are convicted of a DUI, your license will be suspended. This means that you will be unable to drive your children to school or to after-school activities. They might not understand why their routine has suddenly changed or why you are unable to drive them places. Do not be tempted to drive with a suspended license in order to keep your DUI from your children. This can have severely negative effects. It is best that you are upfront about your DUI with your children. You should explain your DUI to your children as best as you can. Model good behavior by complying with the consequences of your DUI conviction and do not drive with a suspended license. Explain to your children that you made a mistake and are now paying the consequences of that mistake.
If your kids were in the car with you at the time of your arrest, they might have an even harder time coming to terms with your conviction. You need to show your children that you are ok and that you are willing to face the consequences of your mistake. If you need treatment for a drug or alcohol problem, get it. This will ultimately help to make you a better parent and it will help your kids come to terms with your DUI. You could also face the possibility of losing custody of your children if they were in the car with you at the time of your DUI arrest. While this is not likely, it is possible.
Getting a DUI is in itself an embarrassing and difficult event to deal with. However, getting a DUI with your kids in the car can be even more difficult for you to deal with. On a personal level, you might be concerned about your kids. You might feel concerned that your children will view you in a different light after this event. In terms of the law, you might face additional charges. Most people charged with a DUI will also be charged with risk of injury to a minor if a child is in the car with them.
Why is Getting a DUI Considered Risk of Injury to a Minor?
If your children were in the car with you and you are arrested for a DUI, the police officer is mandated to inform DCF of the situation. You could be charged with risk of injury to a minor. If more than one child is with you, you face multiple counts of this charge. You will also become subject to a DCF investigation. This is because driving while under the influence is interpreted as poor judgment on your part. Even if no accident occurred, drinking and driving with your children in the car puts your children at risk. They are at risk of both physical and emotional damage. In addition, drinking while operating a vehicle could reveal an issue with alcohol. DCF will want to make sure that you do not have an alcohol problem that is negatively effecting your children.
When charged with risk of injury to a minor because of a DUI offense, the maximum punishment will probably be a Class C felony. Risk of injury to a minor is only considered a Class B felony when it involves sexual abuse. If charged with a Class C felony, you risk a prison sentence of up to ten years. You also face a fine of up to $10,000.
Department of Children and Family Investigations
When the Department of Children and Family (DFC) begins an investigation, it is generally because your case has been referred to the agency. Once DCF becomes involved in your case, an investigator with DCF will generally contact you. They will request an interview with you and your children. If the investigator feels that there is imminent danger for the children, this process will be sped up and your children could be removed from your custody.
After the initial interview, the investigators will try to get into your house and investigate your living conditions. They will look into your children’s bedrooms, your bedroom, and other areas of your house. They do this to try to build evidence in their case. Don’t let them! You don’t have to let the investigators into certain rooms, and it is best to contact a lawyer to help you in this situation so that you can cooperate with the investigation but avoid these obtrusive aspects of the investigation.
DCF has 45 days to determine that the allegations are substantiated or unsubstantiated. In order to substantiate the claim, they have to show that there is reasonable cause that neglect or abuse occurred. If the case is substantiated, DCF has the right to petition for your children to be removed from your home and placed in foster care. They can even have your parental rights suspended. If your case is substantiated, you have the opportunity to appeal this decision. Hiring a lawyer to help you is the best option if you want to make an appeal. If your case is not substantiated, the matter will be dropped, and you will not be at risk of losing your children.
Your DUI charge might affect your life in unexpected ways. If you are going through a divorce or another family law situation, your DUI can complicate the matter. While this is not an ideal situation, understanding how your DUI might affect your divorce can help you prepare. Here, I will discuss some of the issues that you might face when family law and DUI collide.
Financial Issues
If you face both a divorce and a DUI charge, you might find that you have to spend a lot of money for your various cases. There are fines associated with a DUI conviction, and if you want to use the Alcohol Education Program, you will have to pay for this. You likely will have to pay for some kind of treatment or classes mandated by the state. If your DUI resulted in an accident and there was property damage or injury to another person, you will have to pay for this as well.
In addition, you will have to pay for an ignition interlock device if you want to start driving after your license suspension. During your license suspension, you also need to find another way to get to and from work and other events. You might have to pay for public transportation or a taxi, and if you have to do this every day these fees can add up.
Getting your driver’s license back is also expensive. In addition to these fees, you have to pay lawyer fees if you hire a DUI defense lawyer. Make sure that you hire a lawyer who will work with you and set up a payment plan if you feel like you can’t pay for everything at once. You can contact our office to learn more about our price structure.
In addition to these DUI-related fees, you have to pay for your divorce. The divorce itself will cost money between the filing fees and other court fees. You will likely also have to hire a separate lawyer to represent you in your divorce. These fees can all add up and make it difficult to afford what you need at this time.
Along with what you have to pay, you could lose money if you have to take a lot of time off of work to attend different court dates. This will only get magnified if you have a DUI case and a divorce case pending.
Judgements by the Court
A DUI arrest can make it more difficult for you to get what you want out of your divorce. Your spouse might use it against you. First, your spouse might claim that your drinking problem led to the breakdown of your marriage. Even if you don’t have a drinking problem, your spouse could argue that you do and use the DUI as evidence. A history of DUIs could make this even more difficult for you.
In addition, your spouse might try to argue that you are an unfit parent because of the DUI and subsequent substance abuse issues. A pattern of reckless behavior might lead the court to believe that it is in the best interest of your children to live with their other parent. It might be more difficult to get custody of your children if you have a criminal record.
Getting Help
Getting a DUI could impact your family in a few different ways. If you are concerned about personal issues and your DUI, contact my office for help.
