Sarasota DMV Hearing Attorneys
DUI Lawyers Serving Sarasota County, Florida
A DMV hearing, also called a DHSMV hearing, is an administrative hearing which is held regarding the suspension of your driver’s license – after a DUI arrest. When a hearing is requested, it should always be a formal review hearing. In an informal review hearing the DMV is just reviewing the paperwork in making a ruling on the status of your license without considering any defenses or issues. In Florida, you have only 10 days to contact the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (DHSMV) to schedule your hearing – or else your license will be automatically suspended for a set period of time. Our offices are strategically located near these DMV offices which are called the Bureau of Administrative Review or BAR office.
We will request a DMV formal review hearing if the following factors occurred as a result of your DUI arrest:
- You were arrested for DUI and took a breath test or blood test which showed a result of .08% or greater; or
- You were arrested for DUI and refused to take a breath or blood test; or
- You took a breath test and blew below a .08% but then Refused to submit to a urine test
Driving with a blood alcohol concentration that is above the legal limit is a serious criminal offense. Refusing to submit to a breath or blood test is a violation of Florida’s Implied Consent law, which states that when a person has received his or her driver’s license that he or she also consents to chemical testing if arrested for suspected DUI.
How an Attorney Can Help
Our office will schedule your DMV hearing for you by filing the proper paperwork with the DHSMV. Our office will represent you at the hearing in order to give you a better opportunity of keeping your driver’s license. In some ways, having your Sarasota DUI attorney represent you at your DMV hearing means that he or she will be able to prepare even more for your criminal case.
Your DHSMV hearing will be held to determine whether you were lawfully arrested, and if your blood alcohol level was in fact above the legal limit or if you actually refused chemical testing to determine your blood alcohol level. In order to uphold your suspension on a refusal case at the DMV hearing, the Bureau of Administrative Review officer must make a determination that you willingly refused to take a breath test.
To find out more about how Finebloom & Haenel can help you challenge your license suspension at your DMV hearing, contact a Sarasota DUI attorney at our firm today!
