Drunk Driving / OWI / DUI Defense

In Michigan, what most people call a “DUI” is prosecuted as Operating While Intoxicated (OWI). An OWI arrest is one of the most disorienting things a person can face: one moment you are driving home, and the next you are in handcuffs with your license, your job, and your record suddenly at stake. The consequences of a conviction in Michigan are serious and long-lasting. But an arrest is not a conviction, and experienced defense begins immediately after the arrest, not the night before trial.

Michigan Drunk Driving Charges We Handle

• OWI (Operating While Intoxicated): BAC of .08% or higher, or alcohol materially impairing your ability to drive
• OWVI (Operating While Visibly Impaired): no minimum BAC required; impairment must be visible
• High BAC / “Superdrunk” OWI: BAC of .17% or higher; enhanced penalties apply
• OUID / DUID (Drugged Driving): operating while under the influence of controlled substances, including prescription medication
• OWPCS (Operating With Presence of a Controlled Substance): any trace of an unlawful substance in your system, regardless of impairment
• Zero Tolerance (Under 21): BAC of .02% or higher; no actual impairment required
• OWI Second Offense: enhanced mandatory penalties, possible vehicle immobilization
• OWI Third Offense / Felony OWI: charged as a felony; possible state prison sentence
• OWI Child Endangerment: charged when a passenger under 16 is in the vehicle
• OWI Causing Serious Injury or Death: felony charges with up to 15 years in prison
• Implied Consent Refusal: refusing a chemical test; automatic 1-year license suspension

How Michigan OWI Prosecutions Work

Under MCL 257.625, a person commits OWI by operating a motor vehicle on a public road with a BAC of .08% or above, or when alcohol has materially and substantially affected their ability to drive normally. You do not have to be drunk by any common-sense standard. If your driving was visibly affected, prosecutors can charge OWVI even if your BAC was under .08%.

First and second offenses are misdemeanors prosecuted in district court, typically by local city or township attorneys or the county prosecutor. In Ann Arbor, most OWI misdemeanors are heard in the 15th District Court. A third or subsequent drunk driving conviction in a lifetime is a felony under Michigan law, regardless of how many years have passed between offenses. Felony cases begin in district court but proceed to the Washtenaw County 22nd Circuit Court for trial and sentencing.

One thing many people do not realize: Michigan OWI convictions are not eligible for deferred judgment or first-offender programs the way drug charges often are. A conviction stays on your master driving record permanently and is visible to employers and insurance companies. That is why fighting the charge from the very beginning, rather than accepting a plea without careful review, matters so much.

Penalties by Charge Level

First Offense OWI: Up to 93 days in jail, fines from $100 to $500, 360 hours of community service, 30-day license suspension followed by 150 days restricted driving, 6 points on your driving record.

First Offense High BAC (.17+): Up to 180 days in jail, fines up to $700, mandatory ignition interlock device upon reinstatement, 45-day suspension followed by 320 days restricted with interlock required.

Second Offense (within 7 years): 5 days to 1 year in jail (minimum 5 consecutive days or 30 days community service), fines from $200 to $1,000, 1-year license revocation, mandatory vehicle immobilization, ignition interlock required for reinstatement.

Third Offense / Felony OWI: 1 to 5 years in state prison or up to 5 years on probation, fines from $500 to $5,000, 5-year license revocation, possible vehicle forfeiture.

OWI Child Endangerment: If a passenger under 16 is present, a first offense becomes a 93-day misdemeanor or, with prior OWI history, a felony with up to 5 years in prison.

OWI Causing Serious Injury: Felony, up to 5 years in prison. OWI Causing Death: Felony, up to 15 years in prison.

Bond Conditions: What Happens Right After Arrest

Most people are not prepared for what happens at arraignment. When you first appear in court after an OWI arrest, a judge or magistrate will set bond conditions, and those conditions for drunk driving cases can be unusually restrictive. You will likely be ordered not to consume any alcohol or marijuana while the case is pending. Depending on your BAC at the time of arrest, the court may require daily breath testing at a monitoring station or require you to wear a continuous alcohol monitoring device for the entire duration of your case, which can last months. These conditions are expensive and intrusive. Having an attorney present at arraignment allows for immediate advocacy on your bond terms. Contacting Chris as soon as possible after your arrest, ideally before your first court date, ensures you are not navigating that hearing alone.

Implied Consent and Chemical Testing

Michigan’s implied consent law means that by driving on Michigan roads, you have already agreed to submit to chemical testing if an officer has probable cause to believe you are intoxicated. There are two distinct types of tests: the roadside Preliminary Breath Test (PBT), which helps establish probable cause for an arrest, and the evidential Intoxilyzer test administered at the police station, which is the result used in court.

Refusing the roadside PBT results only in a civil infraction with fines. Refusing the evidential Intoxilyzer at the station, however, triggers an Implied Consent violation resulting in a mandatory 1-year license suspension without any restricted driving. You have exactly 14 days from the date of the claimed refusal to request a hearing to challenge that suspension. Miss that window and it cannot be contested. In many refusal cases, police will seek a search warrant for a mandatory blood draw, so refusal does not necessarily prevent them from obtaining a chemical test result.

Defense Strategies in OWI Cases

OWI cases are more defensible than prosecutors often suggest. The investigation begins by asking whether the traffic stop itself was constitutionally valid. An officer must have specific, articulable reasons for pulling you over, and stops based on a hunch or minor technical violations deserve scrutiny. Field sobriety tests are voluntary, subjective, and have documented accuracy limitations even under ideal conditions. The DataMaster DMT breathalyzer used in Michigan has specific calibration, maintenance, and operator certification requirements, all of which must be verified. Blood test results are subject to chain-of-custody requirements, storage conditions, and laboratory procedures.

Additional defense strategies include the rising BAC defense (your BAC was still rising when you were driving and was actually below .08 at the time, only reaching that level by the time you were tested), challenging the reliability of witness observations, and examining whether all constitutional rights were observed throughout the stop, arrest, and testing process. No OWI case should be resolved without a full review of every piece of evidence.

Sobriety Court

For eligible OWI defendants, Washtenaw County’s Sobriety Court program can offer an alternative path. Participants who complete intensive supervision, including regular testing, counseling, and court check-ins, may receive modified sentencing or adjusted license consequences. It is not a fit for every case, but for clients where it is appropriate it can meaningfully change the outcome. Chris can evaluate whether you are likely to qualify and what the tradeoffs are compared to contesting the charge outright.

How Chris Approaches OWI Defense

Chris Easthope spent seven years presiding over OWI cases at the 15th District Court in Ann Arbor. He knows how these cases are charged, how they are prosecuted locally, and what questions judges and magistrates are most focused on at each stage. He has reviewed thousands of OWI fact patterns from the bench, which means he recognizes the weaknesses in a prosecution’s evidence in a way that takes other attorneys years of trial experience to develop. He personally handles every client’s case, reviews every piece of discovery, and gives you a straight assessment of your realistic options, not just the one that sounds most reassuring.