Quincy, I have a question

[cetiya]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Wa
I was charged with a DUI, and received a deferred sentence. at the end of 5 years probation, I will be charged with negligent driving. I was reading your reply describing careless driving and reckless driving, so I was wondering which negligent driving is, and what the points against my license will be. also do you think I'll be penalized in any way for the conviction, even though the acutal incident was 5 years prior? thanks!

 

[quincy]

Hi.

I am not as familiar with Washington driving laws as I am with Michigan's, but this is what my rather brief research found. Someone from Washington will no doubt come along and correct me if I am wrong on any of this.

If you were charged and convicted of a DUI (RCW 46.61.502), you would receive 5 points on your license, and these would remain on your license for 3 years. The DUI is a gross misdemeanor. With your deferred sentence, if you meet all of the terms of your probation satisfactorially, then the court will dismiss your DUI charge, and the Negligent Driving (RCW 46.61.5249 or 46.61.525) conviction will be entered.

The DUI is dismissed 3 years after your successful completion of a 2 year treatment program, or 5 years after your DUI sentencing was deferred. Your DUI charge, then, will be dropped and replaced with the lesser charge of Negligent Driving.

Your plea agreement may have outlined additional penalties after your completion of all of the conditions of probation (such as possible restitution or fines, perhaps?), but I do not believe you otherwise would face any penalties with the Negligent Driving conviction.

Washington has two Negligent Driving charges, Negligent Driving in the First Degree (which is what I am assuming your DUI will be dropped to) or Negligent Driving in the Second Degree (which is a traffic infraction that comes with a $250 fine).

Negligent Driving in the First Degree is a misdemeanor and is charged when a person operates a motor vehicle in a manner that is negligent and endangers or is likely to endanger any person or property, and when that person exhibits the effects of having consumed liquor or an illegal drug.

When alcohol-related, Negligent Driving is 5 points on your license, for 3 years (the same as the DUI). If it is Negligent Driving, not alcohol-related, it would be 4 points on your license for 3 years.

You have a probationary license now? I believe I read that you keep your probationary license for 5 years, but a record of your having had a probationary license is kept by the state for 10 years.

 

[cetiya]

I have a full normal license, I never lost my license or had a restricted one. the facts of my DUI was, I had taken sleeping pills at home, woke up an hour later, it was daylight out so I thought I had overslept and it was 7 am instead of 7 pm, so I drove to work. got in an accident on the way home. because this was more of an accidental incident, instead of me out and partying, taking a bunch of pills and driving home, I was given a lighter possible sentence. I paid my fine, went to court ordered rehab, everything is done, but I have one more year of probation. i have just been curious as to what my insurance will do to me when I get convicted, even though the accident was 5 years ago. thanks for your help! oh, my sleeping pills were not illegal, i had a legitimate prescription for them. no alcohol on board at all.

 

[quincy]

Generally whenever there is a conviction on any driving violation, its appearance on your driving record will affect your car insurance rates. Your rates will generally increase, but by how much it is difficult to say.

Washington's Department of Licensing keeps a record of all traffic infractions, convictions, and notices for failures to appear or respond to traffic citations. The courts forward all of this information to the DOL. Once the DOL receives notice of an entry of a conviction, points are placed on your driving record (5 points for Negligent Driving, First Degree).

While under deferred prosecution, you have not been convicted of anything, so you have had no jail time or any driver's license suspension - although you are generally driving under a probationary license for 5 years during this deferred prosecution period.

The DOL will base its actions on your license at the time it receives the entry of conviction from the court. If your violation was originally charged as a DUI, this stays on your record for 15 years, however the action on your license will be based on the convicted charge. When the court amends a charge, as in your case from a DUI to Negligent Driving, the court will strike out the original charge and add the new violation code and write "amended" on the citation or complaint.

Any action on your driver's license would be taken when the DOL receives this amended complaint and conviction. Regardless of the deferred prosecution, you may still have a driver's license restriction or suspension based on the Negligent Driving charge and the date of the conviction - these driver's license actions are set by statute (RCW 46.20.270) and may not be deleted. In other words, even with your satisfactory completion of probation and the reduction of your charge from a DUI to Negligent Driving, you may still find that the DOL will take license actions (restrictions, suspensions, revocations) based on this entered conviction.

Again, I am by no means an expert in Washington driving laws, but if I am reading the Washington Revised Code and the Washington DMV information correctly, this is what you can expect when your probationary period ends and the Negligent Driving conviction is entered by the court.

 

[cetiya]

not exactly what I wanted to hear, but now I'll be prepared when it all happens. thanks

 

[quincy]

You're welcome, cetiya. Sorry the information is not what you wanted to hear, although I suspect you expected something along those lines anyway. Good luck.

 

[cetiya]

to be perfectly honest, I had no idea I could lose my license at the end of the probation. I thought I had already been punished by the court with my fine, court ordered rehab and the 5 year probation. I thought i might get penalized by my insurance company with the conviction, but had no idea I would lose my license. it seems to me that I should have lost it or had it restricted right after the accident, not 5 years later. is there anyway, with my public defender, that I can get a careless driving instead, and no loss of my license? do you think the judge would be willing to agree since I fullfilled all my obligations at the end of 5 years?

 

[quincy]

With a Negligent Driving conviction entered by the court, the DOL can consider a restriction or suspension of your license. This is not a mandatory penalty, however. There are no mandatory penalties with Negligent Driving.

The result of a DUI plea bargain is often a Negligent Driving conviction after a 5 year probation. And with a Negligent Driving conviction you avoided the harshest of the penalties that automatically come with a DUI conviction. The most that can happen with the Negligent Driving is 90 days in jail and a $1000 fine and a 2 year probation. But you have no difficulty with foreign travel, and you do not have the mandatory SR-22 high risk insurance as you would with a DUI. And there is no mandatory license suspension.

BUT, this does not mean your insurance rates will not increase (again, it really depends on your insurer, and the amount of increase can vary), and it does not mean that the DOL cannot take action on your license.

Whether the DOL WILL restrict or suspend your license or not, however, is difficult to say. I would say, and again I am not an expert in this, that if you completed your 5 year probation with no problem, the DOL will probably not take any action on your license at all.

You cannot, at this point, try to bargain your Negligent Driving down to a lesser charge. The lesser charge IS the Negligent Driving, and that is what you agreed to in your plea bargain. If the DOL does decide to suspend or restrict your license, which in my reading of Negligent Driving actions seems unlikely after the 5 year probation is satisfied, then you can appeal the license action. But I think you will just have a probationary license for another 2 years at the most.

You can check on all of this with your public defender. And good luck.

 

[cetiya]

thanks a lot for the info, that gives me a bit of hope.!

 

[quincy]

You're welcome, cetiya. And I hope that, next year when your probation is completed, the DOL will take no action on your license. Drive safely.