Kansas DUI Laws - Kansas DUI Penalties - Kansas DWI Laws

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General Kansas DUI Laws and Kansas DUI Information

10 DAY WARNING!!!

You must send a letter requesting an administrative hearing to the Kansas Department of Revenue within 10 calendar days of the day you received the DUI or your driving privileges will automatically be suspended, period. Contact a Kansas DUI Lawyer NOW!!!

Kansas DUI arrests give rise to two distinct and separate aspects of your case: the criminal proceedings, which are resolved in the municipal or district court where the case is charged and can result in fines and/or jail time; and the administrative proceedings, which can result in the suspension of your driving privileges. It is extremely important to pay attention to both the criminal court case and the administrative driver's license case, as the deadlines, rules, procedures and burdens of proof are entirely different.

At the administrative level, the term of suspension that you face depends upon several factors: whether you failed the chemical test or whether you refused to submit to it; whether this is your first or subsequent test failure or refusal; and whether you are over or under 21 years of age. The time of suspension of driving privileges, depending on these factors, ranges from 30 days to permanent revocation of driving privileges.

Kansas DUI law provides you with the right to an administrative hearing wherein you or your lawyer can challenge the grounds upon which your license is suspended.   If you request an administrative hearing in a timely manner, your driving privileges cannot be suspended until a decision has been made by the hearing officer.  In other words, the validity of your temporary driving privileges is extended until after the hearing which is frequently scheduled months after the request.  Prior to the hearing, you can subpoena certain documents and witnesses who may have information about your case. 

At the hearing, a number of issues can be raised in your defense, depending on the facts of your case.  These issues include: whether or not the officer had reasonable grounds to believe that you were operating or attempting to operate a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or drugs; whether you were given the legally required notices before being asked to submit to testing; whether your actions constituted a legal refusal to take the test; whether the testing equipment and the officer operating the machine were certified by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE); as well as other due process or other constitutional issues.

If you are successful at the hearing, or if the officer fails to appear without requesting a continuance of the hearing in writing, your license may not be administratively suspended at all.  However, you must send a letter requesting an administrative hearing to the Kansas Department of Revenue within 10 calendar days of the day you received the DUI or your driving privileges will automatically be suspended, period. Thus, it is critical that you obtain the services of a well-qualified Kansas DUI defense lawyer as soon as possible after the arrest.

POTENTIAL KANSAS DUI PENALTIES

Kansas DUI cases in criminal court may result in fines, jail time, court-ordered suspension of your driving privileges, and the potential impoundment of your vehicle. The amount of fine and the length of the jail sentence are determined, in large part, by whether you have previously been convicted, or placed on diversion for DUI.   It no longer matters where or how long ago a prior conviction occurred.   Now, all prior DUI convictions and DUI diversions count, regardless of where or how long ago they occurred.

FIRST KANSAS DUI CONVICTION

A first conviction for Kansas DUI is a Class B misdemeanor offense. The potential sentence is up to but not more than six months in jail.  If convicted, the defendant must serve at least 48 consecutive hours in custody as a prerequisite to probation, unless the court allows the person complete 100 hours of community service instead of the mandatory minimum 48 hours in custody. The fine for a first conviction ranges between $500 and $1,000. At the administrative level, driving privileges are suspended for 30 days, followed by 330 days of restrictions for test failure.  For a test refusal, driving privileges are suspended for a full year.   The driver must undergo a drug and alcohol evaluation and will be required to successfully complete any and all treatment is recommended by the evaluator.

SECOND KANSAS DUI CONVICTION

A second conviction for Kansas DUI is a Class A misdemeanor offense. The mandatory minimum underlying sentence is 90 days in jail; however, the sentence can be as long as one full year.   The defendant must serve at least five consecutive days in custody as a prerequisite to probation, but the judge can order the defendant to serve 48 hours in custody followed immediately by at least 3 consecutive days of work release or house arrest to satisfy the 5-day requirement.  As with a first offense, completion of a substance abuse treatment program is required. The fine for a second conviction ranges from $1,000 to $1,500.At the administrative level, driving privileges are suspended for one year followed by one year of ignition interlock restrictions for a test failure and driving privileges are suspended for a full two years for a test refusal.

THIRD KANSAS DUI CONVICTION

A third conviction for Kansas DUI is an “unscored felony” punishable by up to 12 months in prison.  The mandatory minimum underlying sentence is 90 days; however, the judge can order the defendant to serve 48 hours in custody followed immediately by at least 88 consecutive days of work release or house arrest to satisfy the 90-day custody requirement.  The fine for a third conviction ranges from $1,500 to $2,500.  At the administrative level, the term of suspension for a test failure is the same as for a second offense: one year suspension of driving privileges followed by one year of interlock restrictions.  For a test refusal, the term of suspension is 3 years.

FOURTH KANSAS DUI OR DWI CONVICTION

A fourth conviction for Kansas DUI DWI is also an “unscored felony.”   Like a third conviction, there is a minimum sentence of 90 days and a maximum sentence of 12 months in prison.   A person convicted of a fourth or subsequent DUI, however, must serve 72 hours in jail before being eligible for a work release program. The fine for a fourth conviction is $2,500. Upon a fourth conviction, driving privileges are suspended for one year followed by one year of interlock restrictions for a test failure. For a test refusal, the term of suspension is 10 years.  If there is a fifth conviction, driving privileges are permanently revoked regardless of whether the driver refused or failed the test.

KANSAS DUI DWI DIVERSION

Kansas DUI law is unique, since it allows for a DUI diversion program (which most states do not). If you have never been convicted of DUI, have never entered into a diversion contract for DUI before, and were not involved in an accident or collision resulting in personal injury or death, you may be eligible to participate in a DUI diversion program.

Kansas DUI Diversion is essentially a contract between the county or city and the person charged with DUI in which the person charged gives up his or her right to a speedy trial and his or her right to a jury trial, in exchange for an opportunity to avoid a conviction for DUI. Under the diversion agreement, you will be required to pay a fine; attend an alcohol and drug safety action program or treatment program, or both; use no alcohol or drugs; and fulfill whatever other terms and conditions the city or state requires.

Kansas DUI Diversion has one chief benefit: If, at the completion of the diversion period you have completed all the requirements of the contract, the criminal charge of DUI is dismissed.  However, if you do not successfully complete the requirements of the Diversion contract, the criminal case against you will be reinstated and your trial will be conducted on stipulated facts, meaning that there will be no opportunity to cross examine witnesses, present new evidence, or mount any meaningful defense.

3 Easy Ways to find one of America's DUI DWI Attorneys:

1. Call 1-800-DIAL-DUI and enter the area code for the cities below;

2. Click on the City below nearest where you were arrested; or

Area Code 316: Andale, Andover, Augusta, Bentley, Benton, Cheney, Colwich, Derby, Douglass, El Dorado, Garden Plain, Goddard, Halstead, Kechi, Leon, Mount Hope, Mulvane, Newton, Rose Hill, Sedgwick, Towanda, Valley Center, Whitewater, Wichita

Area Code 620: Albert, Allen, Americus, Arkansas City, Atlanta, Beaumont, Belle Plaine, Bronson, Burdett, Burlington, Burns, Burrton, Bushton, Canton, Cassoday, Cimarron, Claflin, Clearwater, Coffeyville, Colony, Conway, Conway Springs, Cottonwood Falls, Council Grove, Devon, Dighton, Dodge City, Dunlap, Durham, Emporia, Fort Scott, Fulton, Galatia, Galva, Garden City, Geneseo, Great Bend, Hanston, Haven, Healy, Hesston, Hillsboro, Hoisington, Hutchinson, Independence, Iola, Jetmore, Kincaid, Larned, Latham, Lebo, Lehigh, Leoti, Leroy, Liberal, Lincolnville, Little River, Lyons, McPherson, Mapleton, Marienthal, Marion, Milberger, Murdock, Neosho Falls, Norwich, Olmitz, Parsons, Peabody, Pittsburg, Potwin, Pretty Prairie, Reading, Riverdale, Rock, Rosalia, Rozel, Scott City, Tribune, Udall, Ulysses, Walton, Wellington, Windom, Winfield

Area Code 785: Abilene, Colby, Ellsworth, Garnet, Hays, Junction City, La Crosse, Lawrence, Lyndon, Manhattan, Ness City, Oakley, Oskaloosa, Ottawa, Purcell, Russell, Salina, Sharon Springs, Topeka, Troy

Area Code 913: Atchison, Bush City, Edgerton, Kansas City KS (see also MO-816), Leavenworth, Lenexa, Mound City, Olathe, Osawatomie, Overland Park, Shawnee, Tonganoxie, Winchester