The Ten-Day Rule
License Suspension and DUI in Tampa, Florida
If you are pulled over and arrested for DUI in Florida, and are subsequently accused of failing or
refusing a breath or blood test to determine your
blood alcohol level, you will have only 10 days from the date of your arrest to schedule a hearing with the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (DHSMV) to contest the
administrative suspension of your driver's license. If you do not act within 10 days, your license will be automatically suspended – regardless of the outcome of your criminal
DUI (driving under the influence) case.
The 10-day rule is one of many reasons you should move quickly to involve an attorney if you or someone you know was arrested for alleged drunk driving or driving under the influence of
drugs. Under this rule, waiting too long to schedule your
DMV hearing may mean that you will
lose your license, something that is not only inconvenient but that may have a serious impact on your employment, education and day-to-day activities. A
Tampa DUI lawyer can help in several ways.
By getting involved immediately, a DUI defense attorney can schedule your license suspension hearing with the DHSMV. Your attorney can also prepare your case for this hearing, organizing evidence and information that will show the hearing officer that the results of a
breath/blood test are questionable or that you actually did not refuse to submit to a test after your arrest. There are other factors that your attorney can also bring up, such as the lawfulness of your arrest, whether the Tampa police officer had probable cause to pull you over or arrest you in the first place, and whether you were informed of the consequences of refusing a breath or blood test. Proving any of these may have a positive impact on your case and may even mean that you will keep your license.
Act Now – Contact a Tampa DUI Lawyer
Make sure you act before the 10-day rule expires and you are unable to challenge your license suspension. Our Tampa DUI lawyers are skilled in handling both branches of drunk driving cases for clients throughout Tampa and the surrounding areas in Hillsborough County as well as throughout South Florida. We can help you with your DMV hearing and can protect your rights in your criminal court case. Because this is a key focus of our law firm, you can rest assured that we have the knowledge and resources to properly handle your case.
Don't let 10 days from the date of your arrest pass without demanding a license suspension hearing with the DHSMV.
Contact a Tampa DUI attorney at Thomas & Paulk to see how we can help you.