A night out on Tucson’s Fourth Avenue can go sideways fast. The stretch between 6th Street and University Boulevard is one of the most vibrant entertainment corridors in Southern Arizona—live music, packed bars, late-night restaurants, and a steady flow of U of A students and locals blowing off steam. But it’s also one of the most heavily patrolled corridors in Pima County for impaired driving. This vigilance can easily lead to a Fourth Avenue DUI arrest. Luckily, a Tucson Aggravated DUI lawyer can help.
Under ARS 28-1383, certain circumstances automatically upgrade a standard DUI to an Aggravated DUI—a Class 4 felony that carries mandatory prison time, a lengthy license revocation, and consequences that can follow you for the rest of your life. If you’re facing that charge in Pima County, you need to understand exactly what you’re up against, and you need an experienced defense attorney on your side right now. Read on for this guide from the Tucson DUI lawyers from Lerner and Rowe Law Group.
What Is Aggravated DUI Under ARS 28-1383?
Arizona already has some of the toughest DUI laws in the country. Even a first-offense misdemeanor DUI can mean mandatory jail time, steep fines, and an ignition interlock device requirement. Aggravated DUI goes much further.
Under ARS 28-1383, a DUI charge becomes a felony when any of the following circumstances apply:
You Were Driving on a Suspended, Revoked, or Restricted License
This is by far the most prevalent reason for being charged with Aggravated DUI in Tucson. If you were caught while driving under the influence and your license was either revoked or suspended for whatever reason—whether because of a previous DUI conviction, fines not paid, excessive points, or an administrative revocation—then you automatically receive a Class 4 felony offense. A suspended license DUI in Pima County is prosecuted severely under Arizona statutes.
What you need to know is that some people do not even realize that their driver’s license was suspended. There might be several reasons for this, such as missing a piece of mail, moving recently, or simply accidentally letting the deadline pass. Regardless of the reasons behind this problem, the charge remains unchanged.
You Had a Passenger Who Was Under the Age of 15
If there was a child who was under 15 years old sitting in your vehicle during the stop, this becomes Aggravated DUI under ARS 28-1383. This means that you will be charged with a Class 6 felony offense along with possible child endangerment.
The Vehicle You Were Driving Needed an Ignition Interlock Device
If you were driving a vehicle without an ignition interlock device, which should have been installed after previous DUI conviction(s), that by itself is sufficient to elevate the charge to that of Aggravated DUI in Arizona.
You Have Had Two or More Previous DUI Convictions in 84 Months
If you’ve been convicted twice in the last seven years for DUI in Arizona, it doesn’t matter what the details of those cases were—the third arrest is an Aggravated DUI according to the laws of the state, no questions asked.
Fines for Being Found Guilty of a Felony DUI in Arizona
A conviction under ARS 28-1383 means a lot more than just financial trouble. Here are some of the costs you could incur:
- Mandatory time at state prison. As opposed to misdemeanors, where the defendant may be able to seek an alternative sentence to actual incarceration, an Aggravated DUI results in a minimum four-month term at the Arizona Department of Corrections facility. Not a stay in county facilities. State prison.
- Driving license suspension or revocation. Your driver’s license may be suspended by the Arizona MVD for a minimum of one year. No restricted license, no permit, and no exceptions. Effectively, you will lose your source of income, any ability to meet your obligations, and your freedom.
- Felony record that will stick with you forever. This is a class 4 felony, and as such, it will remain on your criminal history, even after a successful set-aside, because there will be a felony conviction on your record regardless of the outcome of the petition process. The implications are clear—losing the right to vote, firearm possession, eligibility for professional licenses, housing, and anything involving background checks.
- Financial consequences. Court-related fees, mandatory surcharges, alcohol treatment and screening programs, SR-22 insurance, reinstatement fees, and everything else could add up to tens of thousands of dollars spent.
And that is precisely why the strength of your Tucson aggravated DUI lawyer is so important. Sometimes, there is only a fine line between a strong felony DUI defense in Tucson and no defense at all, and that line could mean freedom or jail time.
How Your Case Is Built to Defend Against a Fourth Avenue DUI Arrest
Every single felony DUI case is unique, and every arrest has its own specific details that can be leveraged in a criminal defense case. There are no standard defenses because there is no standard procedure for stopping someone for drunk driving.
- Whether proper protocol was followed. Did the police officer follow proper protocol in making the initial stop? An illegal stop means anything from the field tests done at the scene to the arrest itself is invalid.
- The accuracy of the field sobriety test. Field sobriety tests are often flawed due to improper administration or poor environmental conditions. Our U of A campus DUI attorney team will evaluate body cam footage, certifications and qualifications of the police officers, lighting and road conditions, and anything else that could affect the results.
- Accuracy of the breathalyzer and blood test. The equipment used during the blood test must have been calibrated and certified correctly. Blood samples must have been collected under strict procedure and chain of custody rules. Any flaw in that process allows us to raise doubts about the accuracy of BAC results.
- The basis of the license suspension. Suspended license DUI cases require thorough scrutiny of the license suspension itself. Was the administrative process followed correctly? Were you given proper notice according to the law? If not, that can directly impact the validity of the aggravated DUI case based on that suspension.
- Prior conviction history. Where prior DUI convictions are used to escalate the charges against you, we check the legality of those previous convictions. Any procedural error committed when obtaining those convictions may make such records inadmissible.
We always look for the best results for your case, whether that means dismissing the case completely, reducing the charges to misdemeanors, or contesting it vigorously at trial.
Speak with a Fourth Avenue DUI Arrest Lawyer Now
Being arrested for DUI on Fourth Avenue, particularly if there are felony-level charges involved, is one of the most severe legal challenges you might ever face. However, you do not need to go through this process alone.
Lerner and Rowe Law Group has successfully represented numerous clients within Pima County who have faced significant criminal charges, such as Aggravated DUI. We understand the local court system, the prosecution’s methods in building a case, and how to effectively argue against their claims.
Contact our Tucson criminal defense lawyers now at (520) 620-6200, fill out our contact form, or use LiveChat now, and we will be here to help you 24 hours a day, seven days a week, at no cost to you during your first consultation.
The information on this blog is for general information purposes only. Nothing herein should be taken as legal advice for any individual case or situation. This information is not intended to create, and receipt or viewing does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship.