Ohio Drunk Driving Penalties and Records

Driving under influence is the act of operating a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or drugs or both. Driving under the influence is a punishable offense in the United States and is known in various states by various names. It is known as Operating a Vehicle Intoxicated or OVI in the state of Ohio.

Ohio drunk driving laws and penalties has been formed to reduce drunken driving in the state. The Ohio drunk driving law states that it is illegal to drive with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08 percent or more. For minors or drivers below 21 the limit is 0.02 percent or more while for commercial drivers it is 0.04 percent or higher.

The Implied Consent Law in Ohio states that any driver in the state of Ohio must agree to take chemical tests required to determine the level of alcohol in the bloodstream if stopped by the police suspecting drunken driving. On refusal, the driver’s license will be suspended and the punishments will keep getting harsher with each refusal.

Penalties for Ohio Drunk Driving

The penalties for Ohio drunk driving are jail, hefty fines, attending driver intervention programs, suspension of driver’s license, etc. With a repeat crime, the punishments keep getting harsher. For the first Ohio drunk driving offense, the penalties are a jail term of six months, a jail term of six days in case the offender had a blood alcohol concentration of 0.17 percent or more, suspension of the driver’s license for at least six months and up to three years, a fine not less than $250 and not exceeding $1,000. The offender must pay a reinstatement fee of $450. The offender must also attend a driver intervention program for three days.

For a second Ohio drunk driving conviction, the offender has to stay in jail for a minimum of ten days and also has to stay under electronic home surveillance from eighteen days to six months. If the offender was found to have a blood alcohol concentration of 0.17 percent or more, he or she is sentenced to a jail term of twenty days. The amount of fine payable is from $350 to $1,500. The offender’s license is suspended for at least one year and no more than five years.

For the third and subsequent drunken driving offense in the state of Ohio, the penalties remain the same but they are more intense. For a third offense, the driver’s license may be suspended for as long as ten years, the court may order vehicle immobilization for 180 days and the convicted may also be instructed to participate in a mandatory alcohol treatment program.  A fourth Ohio drunken driving offense is regarded as a felony. The amount of fine may go up to $10,000 and the offender’s license may be suspended permanently. Vehicle forfeiture and alcohol treatment programs are mandatory in such cases.

For more information on the drunken driving laws and penalties in the state of Ohio, visit the state website at http://codes.ohio.gov/orc/4511.19+.

Ohio Drunk Driving Records

The Ohio Department of Public Safety, Bureau of Motor Vehicles, maintains driving records in the state. The records of the past three years are available for the public to view. These records include any suspension report on an individual’s driver’s license.

You may view these data on the Internet. Personal information such as the individual’s full name, date of birth, height, weight, social security number, driver’s license number etc. are needed to access driving records in Ohio. Call (614) 752-7600. You may also visit the official website of the Bureau of Motor Vehicles, Ohio to know more about driving records in the state. It is one of the online services provided by the Department of Public Safety, Ohio that allows you to view your unofficial driving records online. Visit https://www.dps.state.oh.us/netsys/netdb/ENGLISH/drivingrecordhelp.asp.

If you want to obtain a copy of the driving records of any person you must submit adequate information about the person such as the name, date of birth, address, social security number and driver’s license number on a form BMV 1173 and submit it to the Bureau of Motor Vehicles. You will be charged a fee of $5 for ordering for the records by mail. You may pay the fee by making a check payable to the Ohio Treasurer.

Download all relevant forms from the website of the Bureau of Motor Vehicles, Ohio. While searching for information on another person you must attach an authorized form BMV 5008 along with your request. You will be charged $8.50 for each request.

If you are requesting for your own driving records you must provide adequate information about yourself and proof of your identity along with your request letter. Visit http://www.bmv.ohio.gov/abstract.stm for more information on this.