Find and Access Arkansas DWI Records

Research on road accidents in the United States presents a disturbing picture. Drunken driving kills or permanently cripples more than thousands every year. Accidents involving drunken drivers cause immense damage to property and insurance companies have to shell out millions of dollars in damages. For these reasons, the 50 states of the U.S. and the District of Columbia have tightened their drunk driving laws in the recent years.

DWI Charge:

A DWI offense is a “driving while intoxicated” charge and carries almost identical implications like a DUI or “driving under the influence” (of alcohol and/or drugs) charge. A person can be convicted of a DWI charge if s/he is proved guilty of driving a vehicle while intoxicated or impaired after consuming alcohol, illegal drugs, or certain types of prescribed medications.

Arkansas DWI Laws and Penalties

In Arkansas, a DWI charge can lead to two distinct cases. In a criminal court case, the convicted driver is ordered a prison sentence, has to pay heavy fines, have his/her driving license suspended, attend compulsory alcohol and substance abuse education program, and have an ignition interlock device installed in his/her vehicle. The driver is also implicated in the Arkansas DWI driver’s license case where the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration Office of Motor Vehicle suspends the driving license of a DWI convict if s/he does not ask for a hearing within seven days of the arrest.

As per Arkansas DWI laws, a charge can be slapped for two reasons. A “common-law” DWI charge is leveled on anyone found operating a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol, drugs, or a combination of both after determining his/her physical appearance and driving patterns and conducting a field sobriety test. In such a case it is not compulsory for a chemical test to show any measurable amount of alcohol in the body. An Arkansas DWI conviction may also be triggered by a per se charge, where a driver is found to be operating a vehicle with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) level that is .08% or more. The driver may or may not be impaired.

Arkansas DWI laws also comply with the Implied Consent rule. As such, an Arkansas driver will agree to take a blood, breath, or urine test to assess the level of alcohol in his/her body, if asked by a law enforcement officer conducting a DWI investigation. Refusing to take the test will result in suspension of the driving privileges of the convicted person.

Reason for Conducting an Arkansas DWI Records Search:

In spite of the above-mentioned Arkansas DWI laws and their strict enforcement, the incidence of drunk driving has not gone down appreciably in the state. In fact, repeat DWI offenses also continue to prevail. The reasons are many: in some cases, drivers convicted of committing a DWI offense continue driving even when their licenses have been suspended and in many instances, convicted drivers often do not participate in or drop out from the mandatory alcohol and substance abuse education and treatment programs.

Therefore, the onus is not only on the law to punish an offender or serve as a deterrent, but also on you to identify such DWI offenders.

Whenever you suspect a person behind the wheels of being a prior DWI convict, check Arkansas DWI records for his current driving license status. If you are running a car hire service or have drivers employed under you, make sure that you check the driving records of an individual to find out if s/he was ever convicted of a DWI crime. An Arkansas DWI records search is also imperative if you have hired a new chauffeur or your child has started availing of the new neighborhood pool car service. You will also need to look up Arkansas DWI records of someone involved in a DWI crime, if you are an insurance agent and your company is required to pay the damages of the offense.

You may also need to search Arkansas DWI records to check the status of your driving license.

Resources for Arkansas DWI Records:

As per the guidelines of the court, all driving records are accessible to the public, except those that have been sealed by the court. The state driving license officials maintain records of DWI offenses with the National Driver Register (NDR) and you may access these records in this database.

The NDR database is a list of all US drivers whose licenses have been canceled, revoked, or suspended and those who have been charged of committing traffic violations and DWI offenses. To request a driving license check at the NDR, you will need to complete the FAA Form 8060-13 available here: http://forms.faa.gov/forms/faa8060-13.pdf and submit it via US mail only, to the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, ATTN: Bureau of Records, Neil Kirkman Building, PO Box 5775, Tallahassee Florida 32314. You may also forward the form to the Department of Motor Vehicles, but sending to Florida directly will speed up the record retrieval process.

A driving record from the NDR contains the full name of the convicted driver, his/her identification details, the present status of the driving license, information on whether the license had ever been canceled, revoked, denied, or suspended, and information on all DWI crimes committed within the past five years and the details of the offense(s).

There are quite a few ways to lay your hands on an Arkansas DWI record, all made easy and hassle-free so that the common man is not discouraged from using the public records database.