Massachusetts OUI

Attorney Michael DelSignore has defended Massachusetts OUI cases for over 20 years, with a trial record that includes numerous not-guilty verdicts. He has been nationally recognized by the National College of DUI Defense for his work on drunk driving defense and has been quoted on OUI law by the New York Post, Boston 25, the Boston Herald, Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, and Lawyers Weekly USA.

Attorney DelSignore has represented professionals, construction workers, teachers, nurses, doctors, and lawyers facing OUI charges throughout Massachusetts, and has over 200 online client reviews.

• What happens to your license depending on whether you took or refused the breath test
• What evidence needs to be requested right away, before it is no longer available
• Whether to fight the charge or resolve it, and what the license consequences are of each option

The method for challenging a breath test refusal suspension is the same regardless of offense level, but the length of license suspension increases significantly with each subsequent offense:

• First offense: a 180-day suspension for refusing the breath test, or a 30-day suspension if the result is over .08
• Second offense: a three-year license loss for refusing the breath test
• Third offense: a five-year license loss for refusing the breath test
• Fourth offense: a lifetime license loss for refusing the breath test
• CDL holders: a refusal with one prior OUI results in a lifetime CDL loss; a refusal or conviction on a first OUI results in a one-year CDL loss

A first-offense OUI is a misdemeanor. The arraignment, a person's first court date, is typically brief: a not-guilty plea is entered, and the person is released on a promise to appear in court. Cash bail is uncommon on a first or second offense. Jail time after a first-offense conviction is rare and should not be the primary source of concern in these cases.

For a third offense or higher, bail is more likely to be required, and for a fourth offense, the Commonwealth may seek to hold the person without bail. Cases involving serious injury can also result in a bail request, and conditions of release for second-offense and higher charges, or cases involving serious injury, may include random alcohol testing.

Evidence in any OUI case can disappear quickly if it is not requested promptly. Some police departments retain booking video for as little as fifteen days. Any private surveillance footage and road conditions relevant to the driving should be requested or documented as soon as possible after an arrest.

The decision to resolve a case or take it to trial depends on several factors:

• The strength of the Commonwealth's evidence
• The potential penalties at stake
• The benefits of a plea versus continuing to fight the charge
• Which court the case will be heard in
• The person's own priorities — whether avoiding a conviction matters more than resolving the case quickly or getting back on the road

These factors differ for every case. Attorney DelSignore reviews the police report directly with each client and lays out what the case is likely to look like at trial, including how the evidence may come in and what strategy is likely to work best given the specific facts.

In some cases, a person may otherwise have a strong defense except for an incriminating statement made to police. In that situation, a motion to suppress can be used to attempt to exclude the statement from evidence. If the statement is ultimately admitted, an attorney can still work to minimize its impact at trial.

In an OUI case involving an accident, the accident itself is often treated by prosecutors as evidence that something went wrong with the person's driving. Alcohol is one possible explanation, but it is not the only one — fatigue, distraction, or other causes may also explain what happened. Many accident-related OUI cases included in Attorney DelSignore's case results have ended in not-guilty verdicts.

Massachusetts defines the criminal offense of OUI as operating a motor vehicle with a blood alcohol content of .08% or greater, or while under the influence of marijuana, narcotic drugs, depressants, stimulants, or glue vapors. Prosecutors often rely heavily on breath or blood test results, but an officer's personal observations and field sobriety test performance may also be considered.

A refusal to take a field sobriety test or breathalyzer is not admissible as evidence in an OUI case, but it does carry separate license consequences, as outlined above. Penalties following a conviction depend on prior OUI history, whether the case involved a serious injury or death, and whether the person was under 21 at the time.

Penalties increase substantially with each subsequent OUI conviction. A fourth-offense conviction, for example, carries a mandatory minimum sentence of at least one year in jail and a license loss of at least ten years.

As in any criminal case, the Commonwealth must prove every element of an OUI charge beyond a reasonable doubt — the highest standard of proof in the U.S. legal system. There are often multiple ways to challenge the prosecution's evidence, including the basis for the traffic stop, how the stop or testing was conducted, how evidence was handled afterward, and how prior offenses are being applied to the case.

• Over 20 years defending OUI cases throughout Massachusetts, with a trial record that includes numerous not-guilty verdicts
• National recognition from the National College of DUI Defense for OUI defense work
• Direct, personal review of the police report and case strategy with each client, rather than a high-volume caseload approach
• Regularly consulted by other Massachusetts attorneys on OUI defense strategy

• Massachusetts OUI Penalties by Offense Level
• Massachusetts OUI Court Process
• Massachusetts OUI Defenses
• Breathalyzer Defenses
• Field Sobriety Tests
• OUI Drugs
• Frequently Asked Massachusetts OUI Questions