A common question that we encounter with our Client's is if they can drive to and from work after they have been charged with driving under the influence. If you have been arrested and charged with a DUI in Rhode Island you too may be worried about your ability to get to and from work to keep your job and support yourself or your family.

Due to recent changes to in the Rhode Island DUI laws, there are options that an experienced Rhode Island DUI attorney can help you explore to keep your license to drive to and from work (and other important appointments and obligations) after you have been charged with a DUI.

After your arrest for driving under the influence in Rhode Island, a new law can help you to keep your job even after your license has been suspended. With a few exceptions, individuals charged with alcohol related DUI offenses can petition the Court for a Conditional Hardship License. If properly presented to the Court, the Court can only refuse to issue a conditional hardship license if your DUI involved a motor vehicle accident or if you had a prior alcohol related traffic violation within the prior ten years.

The Conditional Hardship License would permit you to drive to work from your home on a daily basis within a fixed twelve-hour window each day. If granted, you could only drive between those two locations and you could not run errands or exceed the terms in any respect. If you have other obligations, such as school or doctors appointments, it is possible to ask for Court permission to drive to these obligations in addition to work.

As a condition of allowing you to drive to work or other obligations, you would need to utilize an ignition interlock device in your vehicle. That would be the only vehicle that you could drive while you had a conditional hardship license. An ignition interlock device is a mini-breathalyzer device that would need to be installed in your car that would verify that you were not under the influence of alcohol prior to operating the vehicle. 

There are a number of requirements to the issuance of a conditional hardship license and these requirements must be satisfied before your license suspension goes into effect. Therefore, it is vitally important that you seek the counsel of an experienced Rhode Island DUI attorney BEFORE you appear in Court on your DUI charge. A competent DUI lawyer can ensure that all the conditional hardship requirements are satisfied to ensure that you do not lose your ability to drive to work. 

Contact Attorney Matthew Marin today for experienced legal advice and representation. We help people every day to keep their license and their jobs. We have assisted clients with Conditional Hardship Licenses since it became the law. Let us help you, don't leave your job to chance.