Richmond DUI Penalties
There are a variety of penalties someone charged with a DUI may face. Ranging from attending a VASAP court to time in jail, these penalties can have a number of short and long-term consequences that make contacting an experienced Richmond DUI attorney important. A lawyer with experience working DUI cases can assist by preparing those accused for what to expect throughout the legal process and building a strong defense. To learn more or discuss your case, call and schedule a consultation today.
Impact on Employment
Having a DUI charge can greatly impact someone’s employment, in particular if they are required to drive for an employer. If someone is convicted of a DUI, their license will be suspended for a minimum of 12 months and they have to get a restricted license and are required to use an ignition interlock device in the state of Virginia, which can impact their driving for their employer.
In addition to that, if their employer does any sort of background checks, this can greatly impact that, as it shows up as a criminal offense and can result in someone not receiving a promotion or losing their job. It is common in these sort of situations to have a detrimental impact on someone’s ability to work. If someone has a government job, in most cases with a DUI, their security clearance can be revoked and/or their ability to get an increased security clearance can be cut off by this sort of criminal conviction. If someone is employed, a DUI conviction can most definitely get them in trouble.
Background Checks
Employers in Richmond frequently run background checks, especially if it is a government or a state or federal employee. If the employer sees a DUI arrest or DUI conviction on someone’s record, it can have a detrimental effect on their ability to get a job and not only where it will be a criminal conviction, which could prohibit them from receiving any sort of security clearance for purposes of a government job. If someone is required to drive for their job at all, a DUI conviction will affect their insurance and affect the ability of their employers to insure them, so it can have a variety of effects.
Someone with a DUI conviction will not always have a chance to explain their DUI record, sometimes they will just run a background check and never call someone back. In many cases, they may never be given an opportunity to explain what happened, why it happened, when it happened, or explain the outcome. They will simply see the arrest and then act from there.
Victim Impact Panel
The Victim Impact Panel program is to help DUI offenders realize the lasting and long-term effects of substance-impaired driving and to prevent future offenses from occurring. It is considered a group session where an individual learns about the impact of DUIs on individuals and their families.
With DUI cases, they can be required as part of any sort of counseling. They can also be required as any sort of punishment for the court to impose in addition to any additional counseling. Richmond does use Victim Impact Panels. Typically, they are organized through Mothers Against Drunk Driving and last one to two days and vary between weekends and evenings.
Security Clearances
Security clearances are commonly involved for Richmond employees. With a lot of government jobs, it is required that someone would be able to retain and obtain a security clearance, so if they were to get a criminal conviction from a DUI, it will result in a revocation of that security clearance.
A DUI can harm someone’s ability to get a security clearance or be approved for any sort of security clearance, whether it be for a state or federal government. In addition, if someone is trying to work for any sort of law enforcement agency, a DUI is a criminal charge so it is a Class 1 misdemeanor in the state of Virginia. Most employers that require security clearances will not allow someone to work for them if they have a criminal conviction.
If someone already has a security clearance and then they receive a DUI or a DUI conviction, their security clearance can be revoked. If someone loses their security clearance, it will routinely result in a demotion and/or determination of their employment. With many jobs, someone is required to pass the security clearance before they can perform the job, so if they cannot pass the security clearance, then they cannot perform the job.
Working with an Attorney
If you are charged with a DUI, you must try and mitigate the damage to your security clearance by first obtaining an attorney as soon as possible to begin a plan of action to avoid any DUI penalties in Richmond. You want to begin building a defense to the charge with the hopes of either getting it reduced or even possibly get the charged dismissed.
