License Revocation After a DUI

If you’re arrested for a DUI in Arizona, you may face criminal and civil penalties along with collateral consequences. One of the civil penalties for certain serious drunk driving offenses may be license revocation. A license revocation after a DUI can significantly impact your life if you drive to work or school or to meet other obligations. If you are concerned about losing your driving privileges after an arrest for drunk driving, you can consult with Phoenix DUI attorney James E. Novak.

While a license suspension is a temporary removal of the right to drive, license revocation is a permanent termination of driving privileges. If your driving privileges are completely removed, you will not be eligible for restricted privileges during the revocation period, the way you might be during a suspension.

Arizona state law requires the revocation of driving privileges when a person is convicted of certain driving offenses. Your license may be revoked for a DUI involving drugs or other toxic substances, felony DUI or aggravated DUI, two or more DUIs, felony charges related to a vehicle, two or more reckless driving convictions, vehicular assault, discharge of a gun in a drive-by, perjury to the Motor Vehicle Department (MVD) involving vehicle ownership, making false statements while under oath, or hit and run involving a failure to render medical help or other aid to a victim.

If your license has been revoked, you may petition for a new license; however, getting a new license after a revocation is much more difficult than removing a license suspension. To apply for a new license after revocation, the revocation period must have terminated. If your license was both suspended and revoked, both the suspension and revocation period must have ended. You also cannot have had your driving privilege withdrawn, revoked or suspended in another state. If you have traffic complaints against you, you must have resolved all court requirements and received written satisfaction from the courts. Your application for reinstatement won’t be authorized if you’ve been convicted of a traffic violation within the preceding 12 months, until 12 months have passed since the date of the violations.

As part of your petition, you will need to complete an investigation packet to apply for a review by the MVD. The MVD will review records and other evidence to determine whether you had any traffic violations during the revocation period and have satisfied other statutory requirements. A skilled DUI lawyer can help you assemble any necessary documents as part of this process.

You will also need to submit a recent substance abuse evaluation from a doctor, psychologist or certified substance abuse counselor to make sure you are able to drive safely. The substance abuse counselor must be nationally certified, certified by the Arizona Board of Behavioral Health Examiners, or certified by a comparable board in another state. Alternatively, the substance abuse counselor may be employed by the federal government and practicing in Arizona.

If you are required to install an ignition interlock device (IID), you must provide proof that you have installed your IID. Where a revocation is related to alcohol or drugs, you must provide a Certificate of Insurance (or SR-22), which is proof of future financial responsibility. If you fail to maintain proof for the mandated amount of time, you may lose your driving privilege or vehicle registration. An insurer that is licensed to provide insurance in Arizona can provide this certificate.

If the revocation occurred because you failed to stop at a fatal accident scene under Arizona Revised Statutes (A.R.S.) section 28-661, you must submit a criminal restitution certificate. The court clerk, judge, probation officer, or an Arizona Department of Corrections Officer must complete a form and verify that at least five years of your revocation period have elapsed.

If the MVD denies your petition for reinstatement after revocation, you may request an administrative hearing.

If your license has been revoked, you must abide by the revocation during the revocation period and then petition for a new driver’s license, rather than take your chances and drive on the revoked driver’s license. If you are caught driving on a revoked license you may face further penalties, and the MVD can impound your vehicle for more than 30 days. Moreover, driving on a revoked license can result in the MVD denying your petition for a new license even after the revocation period is over.

Drunk driving is taken seriously by prosecutors, particularly when there are multiple past convictions or circumstances that give rise to a DUI. Revocation of your driver’s license is a serious penalty. If you are concerned about license revocation after a DUI, you can talk to a seasoned criminal defense attorney about your situation. Mr. Novak defends clients who face DUI charges in the Phoenix area including in Gilbert, Tempe, Chandler, Mesa, Scottsdale, and throughout Maricopa County. Call him at (480) 413-1499 or contact him through our online form.