DUI Formal Review Hearing

You only have ten (10) days after your arrest for DUI in Tampa or Plant City in Hillsborough County, Florida, to contest the administrative suspension of your driver’s license.

Fighting the suspension of your driver’s license allows your attorney to subpoena and cross-examine all of the witnesses against you early in the case. For that reason, the formal review hearing is one of the most important parts of fighting your DUI case.

You should hire an attorney within ten (10) days after the arrest so that your attorney can demand a formal review hearing. When you demand the formal review hearing, your attorney can obtain a 42-day permit so that you can continue to drive for hardship or business purposes such as work, church, and school.

If you win the hearing, the suspension will be invalidated and forever removed from your driving record. Even if the suspension is upheld, the evidence gained at the hearing is essential to fighting your DUI charge in the criminal case.

Attorney DUI Formal Review Hearing in Tampa, FL

Contact the Tampa DUI Lawyers at the Sammis Law Firm to discuss your case today. We provide free initial consultations so that you can make an informed decision about hiring the best Tampa DUI attorney to fight your case.

Whether you are charged with a first DUI or a second or subsequent offense, we can help. We know how to fight a DUI case involving a breath test, blood test, urine test, or refusal to submit to testing.

Our main office is in downtown Tampa in Hillsborough County, FL. We also fight drunk driving charges in New Port Richey in Pasco County, FL. We have offices in New Port Richey at 7509 Little Road across from the West Pasco Judicial Center courthouse. In Pinellas County, visit our office at 14010 Roosevelt Blvd #701, Clearwater, FL 33762.

We can discuss protecting your rights during the formal review hearing during the consultation.

Call 813-250-0500 today to schedule a phone or office consultation.

Information Center

• Contest the Administrative Suspension – Don’t Waive Anything
• Formal Review Hearing to Invalidate an Administrative Suspension
• Fighting the Administrative Suspension – An Important Part of Your DUI Case
• How Long Will the Administrative Suspension Last?
• Requirements for the Formal Review Hearing in Florida

Contest the Administrative Suspension – Don’t Waive Anything

The formal review hearing is one of the most important parts of your case. To protect your right to the formal review hearing, you must request it in writing within ten (10) days of your arrest. Do not waive this important right.

Your right to a FORMAL REVIEW HEARING is explained on the back of the DUI citation, which provides:

FINAL ORDER

This will serve as notice of final order of license suspension / disqualification effective on the date it was issued to you. You may, request a formal or informal review of the suspension / disqualification, or if this is your first DUI-related offense, you may waive the review and request a review to determine eligibility for a restricted license.

If you want the department to conduct a review of your suspension / disqualification, you must request such review at the location indicated on the reverse side. Your request must be submitted in writing within ten (10) calendar days following the date of suspension / disqualification and include a copy of this notice.

When requesting a review, or if this is your first DUI-related offense and you wish to waive the review and request an eligibility review for a restricted license, you must include a non-refundable filing fee of $25 made payable to DHSMV.

REVIEW PROCESSES

The informal review shall consist solely of an examination of the materials submitted by you and the law enforcement officer or correctional officer. The formal review allows you to be heard and present witness in regard to this suspension / disqualification.

WAIVER OF FORMAL / INFORMAL REVIEW

If this is your first DUI-related offense and you otherwise qualify, you may waive your right to a review of the suspension and receive a business purpose only license for use during the period your driver license is suspended.

A non-refundable filing fee of $25 made payable to DHSMV is required for determination of your eligibility for a restricted license…..

Failure to request a review within the ten (10) day period shall result in the waiver of your right to a review of the suspension / disqualification and a review of your eligibility for a restricted license.

Formal Review Hearing to Invalidate an Administrative Suspension

For many people, the most difficult consequence of the DUI arrest in Tampa, Hillsborough County, FL, is the driver’s license suspension. During the hearing, the hearing officer will complete a “checklist/case tracking” form (HSVM 78058)(REV 1/23/13 S) anytime there is a request for a review. The form will note any changes, contacts, or unusual occurrences and the reason for invalidation.

Winning the review hearing might occur for any of the following reasons:

1. the indicators of alcohol impairment were insufficient to establish probable cause for the driver’s arrest;
2. the arresting officer or breath test operator failed to appear at the hearing;
3. inconsistencies in the evidence;
4. insufficient evidence to show the person arrested was behind the wheel, particularly in a DUI car accident case;
5. failure to provide a legally sufficient reason for the traffic stop or DUI arrest;
6. failure of the officer to strictly follow the 20-minute observation period;
7. showing that any failure to take the DUI case should not count as a “refusal” because the failure was not willful;
8. failure to show that BOTH of the breath test readings were over a .08; or
9. showing the officer failed to read Florida’s Implied Consent Warning properly.

Fighting the Administrative Suspension – An Important Part of Your DUI Case

In a misdemeanor DUI case, your attorney does not always have a right to take the officer’s deposition before trial or motions. The formal review hearing provides the same benefits as a deposition because your Tampa DUI Attorney can cross-examine all witnesses under oath and then have the testimony transcribed.

Florida law provides for a procedure to enforce noncompliance by a witness with the subpoena issued under Florida Statute Section 322.2615(6)(b), appears in the next succeeding subsection and reads as follows:

How Long Will the Administrative Suspension Last?

After the DUI arrest, the officer will take your driver’s license and issue you a citation that might contain a 10-day driving permit. During those ten (10) days, you must request a formal review hearing to protect your driver’s license.

The hard suspension is when you can not drive for any reason because you are not eligible for a hardship permit. After you have served the hard suspension period, you can apply for a hardship or “business purpose only” permit that allows you to time to work, school, or church.

If you fail to take the important step of demanding the formal review hearing, your driver’s license will be suspended for the following time periods:

Administrative Suspension After a First DUI Arrest:

• Breath Test:
  • If you took the breath test, your Florida driver’s license may be suspended for six months with a 30-day hard suspension.
• DUI Refusal:
  • If you refuse the breath test, your Florida driver’s license may be suspended for 12 months with a 90-day hard suspension.
  • For a first DUI arrest after July 1, 2013, you can request a review of eligibility for a “Business Purpose Only” restricted driving privilege to avoid the 30-day or 90-day hard suspension period called the “waiver review hearing.” By requesting a “waiver review hearing,” you are waiving your right to contest the suspension during a formal or informal review hearing. Instead, we recommend demanding a formal review hearing for a first DUI.

Administrative Suspension After a Second DUI Arrest and Suspension:

• Breath Test:
  • If you took the breath test, your Florida driver’s license may be suspended for 12-month suspension with a 30-day hard suspension.
• DUI Refusal with a Prior High Breath Test:
  • If you refused the test, and your first DUI suspension was after a breath test, you will suffer a 12-month suspension with a 90-day hard suspension.
• DUI Refusal with a Prior Refusal:
  • If you refused the test, and your first suspension was after a refusal, you will suffer an 18-month suspension with an 18-month hard suspension.

Administrative Suspension After a Third or Subsequent DUI Arrest and Suspension:

• Breath Test:
  • If you took the breath test, you would suffer a 12-month suspension (with no option to obtain a business purpose-only license).
• DUI Refusal without a Prior Refusal:
  • If you refuse the breath test and all prior offenses were after a breath test, you will suffer a 12-month suspension with a 12-month hard suspension.
• DUI Refusal with a Prior Refusal:
  • If you refused the breath test and one of the prior offenses was after a refusal, you will suffer a 18-month suspension with an 18-month hard suspension.

Requirements for the Formal Review Hearing in Florida

Under §322.2615(6)(d), Fla. Stat. “[t]he Department must, within seven working days after a formal review hearing, send notice to the person of the hearing officer’s decision as to whether sufficient cause exists to sustain, amend, or invalidate the suspension.”

In addition, Fla. Admin. Code R. 15A-6.013(11) states that “the hearing officer is authorized to enter a final order.” Such order must be transmitted to the driver no later than seven working days from the close of the hearing unless waived by the driver.

Generally, hearsay is admissible at the formal review hearing at the DHSMV. For this reason, your criminal defense attorney should seek and serve a subpoena for every witness named in the packet (unless they have a good reason not to do so).

Since the failure to appear of the arresting officer or breath test operator results in the suspension being invalidated, these witnesses will often be served with a subpoena.

The Formal Review Hearing in Hillsborough County, FL

If were arrested for DUI in Tampa, Hillsborough County, FL, contact the Sammis Law Firm to schedule a free, confidential consultation to discuss the particular facts of your case. During the consultation, you can discuss the particular facts of your case directly with an attorney.

Find out how to protect your driver’s license from administrative suspension at the DHSMV while you fight your DUI case in court. Call the DUI Lawyers in Tampa, FL, at 813-250-0500 today.

Let us put our experience to work for you by fighting the administrative suspension at the DHSMV.