What Counts as a Prior DUI Offense for Sentencing Purposes?
If you are facing charges for driving under the influence (DUI) in Colorado and you have a prior DUI, the penalties you face are significantly more serious. For a subsequent DUI, a jail sentence cannot be suspended (meaning you will typically be required to serve some form of jail time, and at least 10 days), your driver’s license will be revoked for a longer period of time, higher fines can be assessed, and more. With two or more prior DUIs, the penalties become increasingly severe, and a person can face felony DUI charges for a fourth DUI offense. With a felony DUI conviction, a driver can face between two and six years in prison in addition to other substantial penalties.
To be clear, the existence of a prior offense can drastically change the penalties a driver is facing for a DUI in Colorado. But what, exactly, counts as a prior DUI? The Colorado Supreme Court heard a case that required it to clarify this term in 2023, and our Denver DUI lawyers can explain in more detail.
What Counts as a First Offense?
In the Colorado case People v. Woodside (2023), the defendant, Woodside, was arrested for and charged with a DUI in August 2021. About three months later, while Woodside’s charges were pending, he was arrested for and charged with another DUI. In the second DUI case, Woodside pled guilty to the lesser offense of driving while ability impaired (DWAI), and he received a sentence for a first offense. At that point, the first DUI charges were still pending. Woodside argued that the still-pending DUI charges, if he was convicted, should also result in a penalty for a first offense. According to Woodside, since the first DUI arrest and charges happened before he pled guilty in the second case, it should count as a first offense.
The prosecutor argued that Woodside would be “getting a windfall” of “being able to have two DUIs in a very short span of time and being able to plead to both of them as first offenses.” The Colorado Supreme Court ultimately had to decide whether there was a difference between a “prior offense” and a “prior conviction,” and whether the penalties for a subsequent DUI applied at the time of the DUI or at the time of sentencing.
Prior Conviction at the Time of Sentencing Results in Penalties for a Subsequent DUI
The Colorado Supreme Court ruled that, for sentencing purposes, the order in which DUI charges occur does not matter. Regardless of the order in which offenses occur, if a person has a “prior conviction” on their record “at the time of sentencing,” then penalties associated with a subsequent offense apply.
In other words, Woodside’s penalties associated with the first DUI charge, even though it occurred before he pled guilty in the second case, would be sentenced as a subsequent offense even though the actual charges occurred first.
It is beneficial to understand the intricacies of the law so that if you are facing multiple impaired driving allegations at the same time, we can review the playing field to obtain the best possible result for your situation. For example, maybe it would be wise to be sentenced in one jurisdiction first compared to another jurisdiction.
Contact a Denver DUI Defense Lawyer
If you have been arrested and charged with a DUI or DWAI in Colorado and have a prior conviction, it is especially important to seek legal help with your defense. Contact one of the experienced Denver DUI defense lawyers at DeChant Law today to begin developing a defense strategy for your case.
Sources:
casetext.com/case/people-v-woodside-7
casetext.com/statute/colorado-revised-statutes/title-42-vehicles-and-traffic/regulation-of-vehicles-and-traffic/article-4-regulation-of-vehicles-and-traffic/part-13-alcohol-and-drug-offenses/section-42-4-1307-penalties-for-traffic-offenses-involving-alcohol-and-drugs-legislative-declaration-definitions-repeal
