Sometimes Connecticut residents travel to other states, like New Hampshire, for business or pleasure and have the unfortunate luck to be charged with a DUI. If this happens to you, you should first find a qualified DUI lawyer in New Hampshire, but you should also be aware of how Connecticut’s DMV will treat you upon your return.

New Hampshire DUI Penalties

If you have been convicted of a DUI in New Hampshire, you would be convicted of violating section 265-A:2 of the New Hampshire statutes.

In New Hampshire, the penalties for DUI can range depending on the number of prior DUI offenses you have.

First offense: The punishments for a first offense DUI in the state of New Hampshire include a fine from $500-$1,200 and a license revocation from 9 to 24 months. Within 45 days of your conviction, you can enter the first offender impaired driver intervention program (IDIP) and six months will be taken off of your license revocation. Regardless, all drivers must complete the IDIP in order to receive a reinstatement of license.

First offense with aggravation, such as excessive speeding, causing an accident resulting in serious injury to another person, carrying a passenger under the age of 16, or driving with an alcohol concentration of .16 or higher: You will receive a fine between $750 and $2,000 and a license revocation from 18 to 24 months. If you enter a DWI offender intervention detention center and the house of corrections for at least ten days, six months will be taken off of your license revocation.

Second offense, two to ten years from the first conviction: You will receive a fine of $750 to $2,000, you will lose your license for three years, and you must enter a multiple DWI offender intervention detention center and the house of corrections for at least ten days.

Second offense, less than two years from first conviction: You will be subject to the same punishments as for a regular second offense, but you must also spend a minimum of 30 days in the house of corrections.

Third offense: You will receive a fine of $750 to $2,000 and an indefinite license revocation. This offense also carries a 180-day minimum jail sentence, 30 of which must be served at the house of corrections, and you must complete a 28-day inpatient program at your own expense.

If you are a Connecticut resident who has been charged with or convicted of DUI in New Hampshire, you should be aware that there are repercussions on your Connecticut license in your home state in addition to any license impact in New Hampshire as set forth above.

After hiring a New Hampshire DUI lawyer to help you fight your DUI, you should consider contacting a Connecticut DUI lawyer like our firm that has worked with interstate DMV consequences or asking us to assist you in retaining one for your home state consequences.