As a Washington, DC DUI lawyer, I often get calls from people that have recently been arrested on a DUI charge and don’t know what to do with the Official Notice of Proposed Revocation the arresting officer has given him or her.
The first thing I would like to discuss is what this notice means. If you have been arrested on suspicion of a DUI in Washington, DC, you will be given a citation to appear in traffic court, possibly at moving violation ticket, and the Official Notice of Proposed Revocation. This notice is telling you that the DC DMV intends to revoke your privilege to drive in the District. This DMV revocation/suspension is different from the criminal case in which are charged with the crime of drunk driving.
If you do not respond to this form, your right to drive in DC will be revoked. To respond to this form and request a hearing, you must go in person to the DMV at 301 C Street NW. If you have a DC license, you have ten days to go to the DMV, if you have an out of state license, you are given 15 days to go and request a hearing. Once you request a hearing, the revocation will not be enforced immediately. They will take no action until the hearing. At the hearing, if the police officer shows up, and often times they don’t, your DC DUI attorney will get to cross-examine the officer and see what they are going to try and use during your trial in criminal court. This can be very helpful to putting together a strong defense to your DUI charge.
So to answer the original question, the safest thing do when given an Official Notice of Proposed Revocation after being arrested for a DUI in Washington, DC is to go the DMV and request a hearing and contact a lawyer that has special training in fighting DUI charges as soon as possible. If you are wondering how much it will cost to have an attorney represent you at the DMV hearing in addition to the criminal case, it will depend on who you speak with and the facts of the case. Some lawyers do not represent clients and the DMV or if they do, they will charge extra. It has always been my practice to handle the hearings myself as part of the DUI case, but as I said, it will depend on who you speak with. It is important to remember that a arrest is not a conviction.
