Aggravated DUI, also known as “extreme DUI” or “felony DUI” in some states, is a more serious DUI charge that can result from certain aggravating circumstances surrounding the incident that led to the charge. While a first DUI conviction is typically a misdemeanor under most states’ DUI laws, aggravated DUI constitutes a felony charge, which necessarily results in harsher punishments for drivers convicted of aggravated DUI.

 

One common circumstance that leads to an aggravated DUI charge is when the intoxicated driver has an extremely high blood alcohol level (BAC). While the typical DUI charge involves a driver with a BAC of 0.08 or higher, an aggravated DUI charge involves a driver with a much higher BAC. The exact level of a driver’s BAC required for an aggravated DUI charge varies from state to state, but aggravated DUI laws usually require that a driver have a BAC of 0.15 to 0.18 or more. 

 

Another factor that may result in an aggravated DUI charge is the involvement of minor children in the incident that led to the DUI charge. In many states, if you are driving with a BAC of 0.08 or more and you have a minor child in the vehicle with you, you may be charged with aggravated DUI. Other states’ aggravated DUI laws include situations where a bus driver is driving while intoxicated, or when a legally intoxicated driver is stopped while driving in a school zone. An aggravated DUI charge might also occur if a child was seriously injured or killed as a result of the incident.

 

There are a variety of other factors that might lead to an aggravated DUI charge and/or conviction. If a driver charged with DUI is driving with no valid driver’s license, he or she could face an aggravated DUI charge in some states. If driver charged with DUI causes another person to be seriously or fatally injured, or causes extensive property damage as a result of the incident, he or she could be charged with aggravated DUI. Furthermore, if a driver is legally intoxicated and has had multiple DUI convictions, particularly within a certain timeframe, he or she may be subject to an aggravated DUI charge. 

 

A conviction for aggravated DUI can result in far more serious penalties than a regular DUI charge, which is typically a misdemeanor. Aggravated DUI is likely to be a felony charge in most cases, which places a permanent black mark on your criminal record that may disqualify you for some jobs, among other things. Since it is a felony charge, aggravated DUI convictions tend to result at least some minimum period of incarceration, community service hours, a lengthy period of probation, substantial fines and/or costs, a substantial period during which his or her driver’s license is suspended or revoked, and the mandatory installation of an ignition interlock device in any vehicle that he or she drives for a period of time. In some states, depending on the circumstances, you could even have your vehicle confiscated.