DUI With a Child in the Car: What Are the Legal Consequences?

We've all made bad decisions. With a questionable fashion choice, the only victim is your pride. Getting behind the wheel of a motor vehicle while impaired is a much more dangerous option. Doing so with a child passenger in the car might end as one of the most foolish and costly mistakes of your life.

It's no exaggeration to say that a driving under the influence (DUI) charge with a child in the car has the potential to haunt you for years to come. That would be a blessing compared to what might happen in a drunk driving accident due to your impairment. If you've been doing any drinking or drugs at all, think long and hard before deciding you're okay to drive.

Not Messing Around

Driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol has many names. Further, DUI/DWI/OUI/OWI penalties differ between states. But in every state, penalties for a DUI conviction are stiff to begin with. A license suspension and jail time are often mandatory even for a first offense, which is usually charged as a misdemeanor. If you're facing DUI charges with children in the car as well, you're likely to face at least gross misdemeanor charges. Prepare for enhanced penalties that can include:

• Increased mandatory jail time/prison sentence
• Child endangerment charges
• Driver's license suspension or revocation
• Felony charges (even for a first offense)
• Sentencing enhancements
• Meeting with Child Protective Services (CPS) for violation of child endangerment laws

In addition to enhanced DUI penalties, driving while impaired with a child or children in your motor vehicle opens you up to child abuse and child neglect charges. It doesn't matter if a minor passenger is injured by your actions or not. By ignoring your blood alcohol concentration (BAC) and putting them in a position fraught with peril and potential harm, you're engaging in child endangerment.

The repercussions could be dire. Under the California penal code, for example, child endangerment is a wobbler offense. This means you could face either misdemeanor or felony charges and multiple years in state prison. Expect even more severe penalties if it's your second offense or third offense, or someone is injured. At that point, it's an aggravated DUI in most states, which is a felony charge.

A Family Crisis

You should be prepared to lose a lot of things after a DUI arrest with a child in your vehicle. Your driver's license is one. It's also much less likely the state will offer you a first-time offender diversion program. Your children may have to visit you in either jail or prison — or not at all.

If you're involved in a custody arrangement, your DUI conviction could have a serious effect on your parenting rights. The agency handling child protective services in your state has the authority to alter or suspend your parenting time. Termination is a possibility. Your entire life can collapse over doing something you knew was a terrible idea.

Leandra's Law

Criminal penalties can be updated over time. For example, some drug crimes have been reduced in recent years. However, when changes occur to DUI/DWI laws, it generally means the state is increasing punishments. For example, you may have heard of New York's Leandra's Law. New York passed this law in response to the death of an 11-year-old who was killed when a friend of the child's mother crashed while intoxicated.

Leandra's Law provisions include:

• First-time offenders driving while intoxicated or impaired by drugs with a child less than 16 years old in the vehicle may be charged with a class E felony, punishable by up to four years in state prison.
• Drivers who drive while intoxicated or impaired by drugs and cause the death of a child less than 16 years of age in the vehicle may be charged with a Class B felony, punishable by up to 25 years in state prison
• Drivers who drive while intoxicated or impaired by drugs and cause serious physical injury to a child less than 16 years of age in the vehicle may be charged with a Class C felony, punishable by up to 15 years in state prison
• Law enforcement and other mandatory reporters must report a parent or guardian who is charged with driving while intoxicated or while impaired by alcohol or drugs while their child is a passenger in the vehicle to the Statewide Central Register of Child Abuse and Maltreatment

It may sound odd to say that a DUI arrest is a good outcome when someone chooses to drive under the influence with children in their car, but it certainly beats the other grim possibilities. The best option is not driving at all.

Make the Right Call

We live in a day and age where taxis and ride-share services make doing the smart thing much easier when you're too intoxicated to drive. The right decision of keeping your keys in your pocket can do more than keep you out of prison. It can keep families from needing to visit a cemetery.

All DUI cases carry serious criminal charges. If you've failed a field sobriety test, a chemical test, a breath test, or a blood test, it's time to speak with a New York criminal defense attorney who specializes in DUI defenses. Their legal advice and legal representation can make a big difference.

Related Resources

• When Does DUI Become Child Endangerment? (FindLaw Criminal Defense)
• Could I Lose Custody for Child Endangerment? (FindLaw Family Law)
• Can a DUI Lead to a CPS Investigation? (FindLaw Law and Daily Life)