A night out with friends did not end well if you found yourself on the side of the road staring at the point of a police officer's pen. Your DUI arrest, whether it was your first offense or not, has left you embarrassed and thankful you weren't in an accident. Now you may be anxious to just take your punishment and get it over with.
If you think a DUI arrest is no big deal, think again. You may feel confident that you can handle the penalties of a first-time conviction, such as the fines, community service and a temporary license suspension. Once these are over, you can get back to life as normal. However, there are other consequences that you may not notice until it is too late.
Hand over your keys
If you drive for a living, you may already know the ramifications of a conviction. You will likely lose your job and perhaps the chance to ever work in that industry again. Even if the law permits you to get behind the wheel in the future, you may have a hard time finding a trucking company, sales business or delivery service that will hire you with a DUI on your record.
In fact, even if you don't drive for a living, if you are one of the many in Wisconsin with a long commute to work, you may have trouble finding a way to get there while your license is suspended, placing your job in jeopardy.
The consequences reach far and wide
Make no mistake; hiring managers do look at your criminal record. While rejecting your application because of a DUI may be an insurance issue, many times it is simply because a DUI may suggest that the applicant has poor decision-making skills or is too willing to take risks. Besides trucking or delivery, there are other industries that may refuse to consider your job application once they see a drunk driving conviction on your record, for example:
- Many jobs that involve professional licensing, such as nursing
- Jobs that place children in your direct care, such as teaching or day care provider
- Companies that require you to deal with confidential information
- Many military or government positions
- Jobs that require the use of a company vehicle
Even if the job you seek does not exclude you based on a DUI conviction, you will likely have to address the issue in your interview. Since the conviction will be visible on your record, it is not wise to lie about it. Instead, you will have to relive the embarrassment and attempt to convince your interviewer that you have changed since the arrest.
The best way to avoid these possibilities is to find alternative ways home after drinking. However, if you are already facing DUI charges, the assistance of an attorney at the earliest possible moment will benefit your cause.