Oregon has both felony and misdemeanor Driving Under the Influence of Intoxicants (aka, DUII, DUI, DWI or more commonly called “drunk driving”) charges. In order for someone to be accused of Felony Driving Under the Influence, the person must have at least two prior DUII convictions within the preceding ten years. There are two kinds of felony drunk driving in Oregon. The first is where the person has two prior DUII convictions within the prior ten years. With this form of felony DUII, if the individual is convicted, the court must sentence the person to at least 90 days of incarceration. The more serious felony is where the person is accused of DUII in a circumstance where that individual has at least three prior DUII convictions within the previous ten years. This DUII conviction can result in the individual being sentenced to prison.
While we use the terms jail and prison casually and interchangeably in everyday conversation, what a criminal defense lawyer means by jail when they refer to that term, is typically a local county or city facility where an individual can receive a sentence of up to one year. A prison is a larger institution where individuals convicted are sent to serve sentences longer than one year. Oregon has a number of prisons spread throughout the state. The largest ones are in Salem and in Ontario. Additionally, anyone convicted of a felony drunk driving or DUII charge will suffer a permanent revocation of their driving privileges.
It goes without saying that a felony accusation of drunk driving is an extremely serious matter. It is wise to find an attorney who is experienced in defending against a charge of felony driving under the influence (DUI). If you are facing a felony DUII charge, please feel free to contact the Duvall Law Office. The Duvall Law Office handles felony drunk driving charges throughout the state of Oregon. We are based in Eugene, Oregon, and most of our DUII cases are handled in Lane County Circuit Court, Eugene Municipal Court and Springfield Municipal Court. There are other courts in Lane County including Cottage Grove Municipal Court and Florence Municipal Court. Felony DUII charges can only be tried in circuit courts. In addition to Lane County Circuit Court, we practice in the surrounding counties and throughout Oregon. Those counties include Benton County Circuit Court, Linn County Circuit Court and Douglas County Circuit Court. If you are interested in speaking to us about a charge of DUII (aka Driving Under the Influence, DUI, DWI or more commonly called “drunk driving”), please contact us to schedule an appointment at 541-345-4500.