If you are thinking of entering a Deferred Prosecution on your Washington State DUI or Lynnwood DUI charge, you may want to be aware of a new DUI law taking effect January 1, 2011.
Prior to January 1, 2011, if a defendant enters a deferred prosecution on a Seattle DUI or any Washington DUI charge, the court is required to order the defendant to apply for an Ignition Interlock License. To get an ignition interlock license, a defendant must have proof of financial responsibility, which usually means having to get expensive SR-22 high risk insurance. Under the new DUI law, RCW 46.20.720, however, as of January 1, 2011, the court is no longer required to order a defendant to apply for an ignition interlock license when the defendant enters a deferred prosecution. The court will still order an ignition interlock device, but not an ignition interlock license. This means that, in most cases, if handled properly by a qualified Lynnwood DUI Attorney, a defendant will not have to get high risk SR-22 insurance for deferred prosecutions entered after January 1, 2011.
I am currently advising my clients who are considering deferred prosecution to put off entering deferred prosecution until 2011. While we are not certain how the Washington State Department of Licensing will handle deferred prosecutions entered in 2011 for offenses occurring in 2010 or earlier, there is a good chance that DOLwill apply the new rules when it comes to SR-22 insurance.
I recently gave a talk on the new DUI laws going into effect on January 1, 2011. If you are charged with DUI or have questions on how the new DUI law may affect you, feel free to CONTACT MY OFFICE.
IF YOU ARE CHARGED WITH A DUI AND ARE CONSIDERING DEFERRED PROSECUTION, LYNNWOOD DUI LAWYER LANCE R. FRYREAR IS HERE TO HELP.