Drink Driving
Every state in Australia prohibits driving a car, truck, motorbike, boat or any other vehicle if you’ve consumed too much alcohol or any drugs.
Drink Driving in Queensland - What's the Penalty?
In Queensland, the penalty you face depends on two things: on the one hand, how serious the offence is and whether you’ve done it before, and on the other hand, what can be said on your behalf to explain your offending and how the penalty will affect your life and those you love.
So obviously if the court only hears what the police have to say about the offence, the penalty will be higher than it should. The only way to ensure that you receive a fair penalty is to use specialist representation by an experienced drink driving lawyer to clearly explain your actions and plead against a harsh result.
Just last year the Government made changes to the penalties for drink driving offenders, and now in some cases, multiple cumulative disqualifications can be imposed. That should be of great concern to anyone given that the maximum period of disqualification that can be imposed for a first offence of drink driving is a 9 month licence disqualification. Don’t forget, such an offence also carries with it a potential jail term of as much as 3 months.
What if I've been caught driving under the influence of drugs and need a drug driving lawyer?
What About a Work Licence?
The impact of a disqualified licence on employment is obvious. There are, though, circumstances in which you can apply for a Work Licence. But great care is needed in preparing for a Work Licence Application because if your sworn material fails to convince the Court, or if the police want to cross examine you, the Application might be unsuccessful and see you lose your ability to drive.
In New South Wales there is no such thing as a Work Licence. Those people wishing to drive after being convicted of a drink driving offence must encourage the Court to put them to a bond without recording the conviction. Again, such a result is certainly not common and your prospects of obtaining it are maximised by using a skillful and experienced criminal lawyer.
Penalties for these offences can vary greatly and representation by a Criminal Defence Lawyer is the safest way of navigating through them. Without such specialist assistance you might fall foul of features of the law which are not widely known: for example, the New South Wales Guideline Judgment on High Range Drink Drives. This case effectively says that if you come before a New South Wales Court as a first time offender charged with High Range Drink Drive there are a number of circumstances in which the only appropriate penalty is jail.
Knowledge and experience are the only tools to use when so much is at stake. If you've been charged with a drink driving offence in Brisbane, the Gold Coast, Tweed or Northern NSW area, contact McMillan Criminal Law to discuss your options.
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