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CAN
THEY DO THAT??
ADMINISTRATIVE
SUSPENSION - OUI
Janet
T. Mills, Esq.
WRIGHT
& MILLS, P.A.
I
WAS STOPPED FOR DRUNK DRIVING. THE
DISTRICT ATTORNEY DIDN'T BRING ANY CHARGES
AGAINST ME, BUT THE SECRETARY OF STATE
SUSPENDED MY LICENSE ANYWAY!
CAN
THEY DO THAT?
Yes
they can!
Maine
law allows the Secretary of State to
suspend your driver's license for ninety
days on a first offense OUI even if you
are acquitted of the underlying criminal
charge. In fact, you can lose your license
administratively even if you are never
charged with the criminal
offense.
The
license suspension is based on the
arresting officer's report, which the
officer is supposed to send in to the
Secretary of State's office within a few
days after the incident. If the report
shows that the officer had probable cause
to believe you were operating a motor
vehicle and that you were under the
influence or had a blood alcohol level of
more than .08, then you will lose your
license.
You
have a right to have a hearing before the
State takes your license, but you have to
ask for it in writing. When you send in a
written request, the State will hold a
hearing within a few weeks, and you have
to be there when the hearing is scheduled,
usually at the Bureau of Motor Vehicles
building in Augusta. Even if the officer
does not show up to testify, you will lose
your license if you are not there in
person. If you and the officer are there,
you or your attorney will have a chance to
ask the officer questions about the
evidence.
The
issues for the hearing are whether the
officer had probable cause to believe you
were operating a motor vehicle and that
you were under the influence of
intoxicating liquor and/or drugs or you
had a blood alcohol level of .08 or more.
The
standard of proof in a license suspension
hearing is only by a preponderance of the
evidence, that is, whether it was more
likely than not that you were under the
influence or had an excessive blood
alcohol level. This standard of proof is
much lower than the burden of proof in a
criminal case when the state has to prove
beyond a reasonable doubt that you are
guilty of a crime. However, the Secretary
of State's office cannot send you to jail
or impose a criminal fine for an OUI
violation; they can only take your license
and require you to do certain things, like
take the DEEP course and obtain insurance,
before you get your license
back.
If
you took a blood alcohol test when you
were stopped and the test was .08 or above
and you had no prior OUI violations or
prior refusals, you will lose your license
for ninety days. If you refused to take a
blood alcohol test, you will lose your
license for 180 days, and if you had a
prior OUI or refusal, you will lose you
license for eighteen months. If you are
under the legal drinking age (twenty-one)
and you had any blood alcohol level at
all, you can lose your license for a
year.
So
be careful when you drink and drive. You
can lose your license even if you are not
guilty of the crime of
OUI.
It's
the law!
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