There are differences among Military DUI charge and civilian DUI charge. If you are in military and have been caught for DUI then you have to keep in mind that the process and consequences of a Military DUI charge can be much different than someone who faces a civilian charge. So here I have mentioned some important differences that you need to understand when you’re dealing with a Military DUI charge.
Fact # 1: Alcohol Intoxication Limit for a military DUI
A military court can use the state’s legal blood alcohol limit for a military DUI for the members of the military. However, this does not happen every time, as military courts aren’t limited to the state’s legal limit. If in case you have a blood alcohol limit that is lower than the state’s legal limit, but if the military court feels that it was enough to impair your ability to operate a vehicle, then you can still be charged with a military DUI.
Fact # 2: Trial for a military DUI
Unlike civilian DUI, the trial for your military DUI will take place in a military court. Here it is important for you to know that you’ll need an attorney that understands military law and military DUI. While civilian court proceedings takes a long period of time to announce the last decision, but military DUI court will move much faster.
Fact # 3: Sentencing applied to military DUI conviction
There can be a wide variety of punishment in a military DUI conviction. A DUI sentence in a civilian trial is limited to community service, jail time, fines, loss of license, community service, and DUI programs. These are all that are limited by state law.
In a military DUI case, the you can be sentenced quite differently as compared to civilians. For instance, there is no maximum legal sentence for military DUI, so the court will be able to decide the sentence. A person convicted for a military DUI can face punishments like dishonorable discharge, a rank reduction, a pay deduction, loss of security clearance, fines, and imprisonment. At the very least you may receive a formal reprimand for your military DUI conviction.
Fact # 4: Effect of a military DUI on your career
Your military career can be seriously affected by a military DUI. You can possibly receive a dishonorable discharge that would end your military career permanently.
Less severe, but still very serious, is that as a result of a military DUI conviction you could become unable to increase in rank or pay grade. Your military DUI conviction will become part of your permanent military record.
In the armed forced, a military DUI is considered as a very serious charge so for this charge very serious consequences are faced by the convicted person. Moreover it requires the skills of an aggressive DUI lawyer who has experience in handling military DUI cases.
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Posted on 12 August 2010