Question: I got arrested in Atlanta for DUI.  I'm a bartender and I know a lot of people.  I was talking with a regular at our Midtown Atlanta club and I think I have a legal defense or at least something that will help me.  The regular and I got to talking.  I told him that I got a DUI.  He said that in New York, where he's from, he had a DUI.  I told him I also got a DUI in New York.  It was something else we had in common.

I know that more than 1 DUI can cause problems here in Georgia.  Then we both realized that in New York it's not a DUI, it's called a DWI.  That could be a huge difference, we thought.  We're not lawyers and I only have a high school degree and my friend dropped out of school in 10th grade to do construction, but we think that could be a big difference.

Since New York calls it a DWI and Georgia calls it a DUI, will that mean the prosecution will just treat it like my first DUI (which, technically, it is)?  Is this a huge technicality?

Answer:Different states use different terms in their legislation to describe driving while impaired by alcohol and/or drugs.  Some common acronyms are DUI, DWI, OWI, OMVI, & DUII; and there are still others.  In Georgia (and elsewhere) prosecutors look for other DUI charges.  Generally, the more DUI charges an individual has, the greater the potential punishments.

If a prosecutor finds that you have another impaired driving charge, they will likely use that to enhance punishments.  That another state uses a different acronym than DUI will matter little.  We would be interested to know how old the prior DWI is.  If it is within, say, 5 years it will have greater weight than a DWI from 15 years ago.

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