Driving and License Suspensions in Alaska DUI Cases

Under Alaska's Implied Consent statute, a person who operates or drives a motor vehicle, aircraft, or watercraft in the state of Alaska is deemed to have given his/her consent to a chemical test or tests of the person's breath for purposes of determining blood alcohol content (BAC). Consent to a preliminary breath tests is implied as well.

Prior to the police requesting a chemical test, they must inform the DUI suspect of their "implied consent rights," notifying the suspect that refusal to submit to a chemical test is a class A misdemeanor that will result in penalties including the suspension of the person's privilege to drive. Additionally, the suspect must be told that test refusals are admissible in any criminal proceedings that arise from the alleged offense. Refusal to submit to a preliminary breath test is also admissible in court, and refusal of such is considered an infraction. The penalties for a chemical test refusal are the same as for a DUI offense. An offender who is convicted of both a criminal DUI offense and a test refusal may be ordered to serve their sentences concurrently or consecutively, depending on the circumstances.

Persons who refuse a chemical test or submit to a chemical test and "fail" by providing a result of .08 or higher will have their driver's license immediately suspended for a period of at least 90 days (or longer, as explained below). Suspects who blow over .08 may be eligible for a limited work permit for 60 of the 90 days of their suspension, but no such limited permit is available to people who refuse a test.

The penalty for a DUI test result over .08/test refusal is a 90 day license suspension. Persons with one prior DUI conviction will face a 1 year suspension and the penalty for someone with 2 prior convictions is a 3 year license suspension. DUI offenders with 3 our more prior convictions may lose their driving privileges for 5 years.

**NOTE - Administrative license suspensions are initiated by the Department of Motor Vehicles. Any penalty for a DUI test "failure" or refusal will be in addition to the penalties that may be imposed as a result of a criminal DUI conviction arising from the same incident. The sentencing judge has the discretion of whether the penalties from the criminal and administrative cases will run concurrently or consecutively.

Administrative Review of Alaska DUI Implied Consent License Suspensions

Alaska DUI suspects who have their license suspended may seek relief by requesting an administrative review hearing to contest the suspension. However, a hearing must be requested within 7 days following the date of arrest, and failure to timely request a hearing will result in an automatic suspension of the person's privilege to drive. Persons who request a hearing will be given a temporary driving permit until the date of the hearing.

Administrative review hearings are held by the Department of Motor Vehicles. A hearing officer will preside over the hearing and he will determine whether or not the revocation/suspension of your license was valid. You should retain an attorney to represent you at this hearing. The police officers that were involved in your case may appear and testify. Your attorney will have an opportunity to gather facts and information from the police that may be useful to defending your criminal DUI charge. If the hearing officer determines there were valid grounds for your suspension, then it will be upheld. Alternatively, if the hearing officer finds that there was insufficient grounds for your suspension, your license and driving privileges will be reinstated.