Louisiana DUI Law
Louisiana counties - map view
Choose your Louisiana county to locate a DUI LAW Lawyer in your area.
Consequences of a DWI conviction in Louisiana
DWI First Offense (Misdemeanor)
- Fine: $300-$1,000 (plus court costs and other fees)
- Jail: 10 days to 6 months (all can be suspended except as set forth below)
- Community Service: 32 hours
- Substance Abuse Evaluation and Driver Improvement School Required.
- If BAC over .15: Minimum mandatory 48 hours jail.
- License Suspension: 90 days
DWI Second Offense (Misdemeanor)
- Fine: $750-$1,000 (plus court costs and other fees)
- Jail: 30 days to 6 months (all but 48 hours can be suspended)
- Community Service: 240 hours
- Substance Abuse Evaluation and Driver Improvement School Required.
- BAC .15 or more: Minimum mandatory 96 hours in jail.
- Driver's License Suspension: 1 year
DWI Second Offense when the prior conviction is for
Vehicular Homicide or First Degree Vehicular Injuring (Felony)
- Fine: Mandatory $2,000 (plus court costs and other fees)
- Jail: 1 to 5 years (all but 6 months can be suspended)
- Community Service: 240 hours
- Substance Abuse Evaluation and Driver Improvement School Required
- Driver's License Suspension: 1 year
DWI Third Offense (Felony)
- Fine: Mandatory $2,000
- Jail: 1 to 5 years (all but 6 months can be suspended)
- Substance Abuse Evaluation and Driver Improvement School Required
- Vehicle: Mandatory seizure and sale of the
vehicle being operated at the time of arrest with
the proceeds forfeited to the State.
- Driver's License Suspension: 2 years
DWI Fourth Offense (Felony)
- Fine: Mandatory $5,000 fine
- Jail: 10 to 30 years (all but 2 years can be
suspended on a first conviction for DWI Fourth Offense)
- Vehicle: Mandatory seizure and sale of the
vehicle being operated at the time of arrest with
the proceeds forfeited to the State.
- Driver's License Suspension: 2 years
Prior convictions which may be used to convert a DWI into a second, third or fourth offense include a
conviction for vehicular homicide, vehicular negligent
injuring, first degree vehicular negligent injuring or
a conviction for DWI in any state, municipal or other
court.
Louisiana has a 10 year "cleansing period" for DWI offenses. This means that if the arrest for
the prior offense occurred over 10 years before the
arrest for the current offense, that prior conviction
cannot be used to convert the present DWI offense to a
higher offense. However, any time that the arrestee
was incarcerated during that period is excluded from
the calculation of the 10 year limit.
Additionally, Louisiana has a Child Endangerment
Law which provides that if a child 12 years of age or
younger was a passenger in the vehicle when the
defendant was arrested, the minimum mandatory sentence
provided for each offense cannot be suspended. This
means that if the Child Endangerment Law applies, the
minimum mandatory sentences would be as follows:
- DWI First Offense: 10 days in jail
- DWI Second Offense: 30 days in jail
- DWI Third Offense: 1 year in jail
- DWI Fourth Offense: 10 years in jail
A conviction includes; a verdict of guilty after a
trial, a plea of guilty or a plea of nolo contendre. A
conviction also includes a prior offense that was
dismissed under Louisiana Code of Criminal
Procedure Article 894.
UNDERAGE DWI
In Louisiana, it is a crime (LA. R. S. 14:98.1) for a person under the age of 21 to operate a motor
vehicle with a blood alcohol concentration of .02 per
cent or more.
PENALTIES
Underage DWI First Offense (Misdemeanor)
- Fine: $100-$250.00.
- Substance Abuse Evaluation and Driver
Improvement School Required.
Underage DWI Second Offense (Misdemeanor)
- Fine: $150-$500.00.
- Jail: 10 days to 3 months (all of which may be suspended)
- Community Service: 80 hours
- Substance Abuse Evaluation and Driver Improvement School Required.
Any person under the age of 21 who has a blood
alcohol concentration of .08 per cent or more is to be
charged under the "regular" DWI statute (14:98).