Juvenile DUI

Do you have a son or daughter who is facing an underage DUI charge?

If you answered yes, you need to seek immediate help from DUI attorney Michael Anzalone. This is a serious charge that may have long-lasting implications for your teenager.

The first thing you need to understand about a driving while under the influence of alcohol for a juvenile is this: there is a lower legal limit for underage drivers. That means anyone under the age of 21, so we are not just talking about high school students.

This can be a devastating turn of events for anyone, but especially so for a juvenile. It can wreck dreams. So, if your child has been accused of driving while under the influence of drugs or alcohol in New Hampshire, please contact a DWI attorney.

The state spells out the penalties for underage DWIs in RSA 265-A:3.

According to state law, anyone under the age of 21 who is caught with a blood alcohol level of 0.02 or higher is considered legally impaired. For anyone over the age of 21, the legal limit is higher, at 0.08 percent.

And, just to be clear, in New Hampshire, a person under the age of 21 can be charged with aggravated DUI if they _ while operating a vehicle with a blood alcohol level of 0.02 or higher _ drive at 30 miles per hour or more over the speed limit, cause a crash that leads to serious injuries, elude law enforcement officers or carry a passenger under the age of 16.

The penalties for someone under the age of 21 are the same as for someone over the age of 21. There is no lighter sentencing for someone who is under the age of 21.

Believe it or not, in some cases the penalties can be even worse for a younger driver.

Juvenile drivers, for example, have their driver’s license suspended for one year.

And, for someone under 21 who has been arrested on a DWI charge for the first time, it is considered a Class B misdemeanor with a possible fine of at least $500, according to state statutes. The teen may also be required to participate in an impaired driver care management program and an impaired driver education program.

So, this is a highly serious matter than deserves the utmost care. This can impact a teen’s life for quite some time, including getting into college, obtaining student loans and also future employment.

You’ll need an aggressive lawyer who is accustomed to dealing with impaired driving suspects under the age of 21.

Obviously, the best advice is to never drink and drive, or take drugs of any kind while driving. But in reality, that’s not always advice that a teenager will heed. So you need to take immediate action to make sure that your teenager’s rights are protected as best as possible.

Our goal is to get the best possible outcome in this case.

Call us today for a free consultation with Michael Anzalone at The Anzalone Law Firm in Nashua, New Hampshire.