Should I Request A Hearing After My DWI Arrest in Houston?
Anyone charged with a DWI in Texas or more specifically, Harris County, Texas should know that they have 15 days after their arrest to request an administrative license revocation hearing in order to save their driver's license. If this is not done they automatically lose the driver's license after 40 days of their arrest. Most clients believe that the hearing must take place within that time period. Unfortunately, this is not the case. Once the hearing is requested it typically takes 3-5 months before there is a hearing to determine if the driver's license will be suspended.
The period of time that is it is taking for the hearings is unacceptable and contrary to the mission of the ALR program that was designed to suspend the driver licenses of dangerous drivers in a swift and sure manner. DPS' words not mine. Curiously, nothing is mentioned about it being done in a fair and just way. Many times the hearing provides favorable evidence to the accused that is not mentioned in the original offense report submitted by the police officer. Most importantly, it provides the DWI lawyer with the opportunity to pin an officer down on the record to the true facts surrounding the DWI arrest. These is helpful when evaluating a case.
