Austin Location
608 West 12th Street, Suite B Austin, TX 78701
Georgetown Location
706 Rock St, Georgetown, TX 78626
512-369-3737
get directions A first-offense DWI in Texas is a Class B misdemeanor under Texas Penal Code § 49.04 — not a felony in the ordinary case. But “misdemeanor” understates what you are facing: a first DWI carries possible jail time, a fine plus a separate state fine, a driver’s license suspension handled in its own proceeding, and a permanent criminal record unless the case is dismissed or later sealed. Two separate cases open the moment you are arrested — a criminal case in the county court and an administrative license case (ALR) with the Texas Department of Public Safety — and the ALR clock starts running immediately.
A first-offense DWI is a Class B misdemeanor in Texas under Penal Code § 49.04. It becomes a Class A misdemeanor on a first offense if your blood or breath alcohol concentration was 0.15 or higher at the time of testing, under § 49.04(d).
A first DWI is charged as a felony only in specific circumstances: if a child under 15 was a passenger (DWI with child passenger, a state jail felony under Penal Code § 49.045), or if the driving caused serious bodily injury (intoxication assault) or death (intoxication manslaughter). For the typical first-offense stop with no injury and no child passenger, the charge is a misdemeanor — but the consequences reach well beyond the courtroom.
A first-offense Class B DWI carries a punishment range of 72 hours to 180 days in county jail, a fine, and up to two years of community supervision (probation) in lieu of jail for most first offenders. On top of the criminal fine, a separate state fine applies on a final conviction under Texas Transportation Code § 709.001. Penalties commonly include:
A Class A first DWI (BAC 0.15+) raises the ceiling to up to one year in jail and a higher fine, and carries the $6,000 § 709.001 state fine noted above. The exact figures and conditions vary by county and by court — Travis, Williamson, Hays, and Bell County courts each run their DWI dockets differently.
“When you hire this firm, you get a named attorney from intake through resolution. The lawyer who explains your case at signing is the lawyer who appears at every setting. We do not hand cases off to whoever is at docket call.”
David D. White
Austin Criminal Defense Lawyer
Not automatically — but you can, and the deadline to fight it is short. A first-DWI license suspension does not happen in the criminal courtroom. It happens through the Administrative License Revocation (ALR) program run by the Department of Public Safety, which is a completely separate civil proceeding triggered by either failing or refusing the breath or blood test.
If you fail a test (BAC 0.08 or higher), the suspension is typically 90 days on a first offense. If you refuse testing, the suspension is typically 180 days, because refusal carries its own penalty under the Texas implied-consent law, Transportation Code § 724.011. You can usually obtain an occupational license to keep driving to work, school, and essential duties even during a suspension.
The ALR hearing is your chance to challenge the license suspension before it takes effect — and it is the single most time-sensitive part of a first DWI. You have 15 days from the date of notice of suspension to request an ALR hearing. Miss that window and the suspension takes effect automatically; request it in time and your license stays valid until the hearing is decided.
The ALR hearing is also a quiet strategic advantage. Because it happens early, it can be used to put the arresting officer under oath and lock in testimony about the stop, the field sobriety tests, and the basis for the arrest — testimony that can later support a motion to suppress in the criminal case. This is one reason the firm asks for your paperwork immediately: the 15-day clock does not wait for your first court date.
Because the license case runs on its own fast clock, it is worth understanding the 15-day deadline to protect your license after a DWI before that window closes.
In Texas, DWI and DUI are two different offenses, not two words for the same thing. DWI (driving while intoxicated, Penal Code § 49.04) applies to anyone operating a vehicle while intoxicated by alcohol or drugs and is a criminal offense. DUI (driving under the influence) applies only to minors under 21 and is charged under the Alcoholic Beverage Code — it is a Class C misdemeanor based on any detectable amount of alcohol, with no minimum BAC.
A driver under 21 can be charged with DUI, DWI, or both depending on the alcohol level. The distinction matters because the penalties, the license consequences, and the long-term record implications are very different for each.
A DWI conviction is permanent — Texas does not allow expunction of a conviction. But two outcomes change that picture. If the case is dismissed or you are acquitted, you may be eligible to have the arrest record expunged entirely. And since 2017, many first-time DWI offenders who were convicted are eligible to seal the record through an order of nondisclosure under the Government Code, provided certain conditions are met — no accident involving another person, completion of the sentence, a waiting period after the sentence ends, and, in many cases, that the BAC was below a set threshold.
Sealing is not automatic and the eligibility rules are specific. This is why how a first DWI is resolved — dismissal, reduction, or conviction — shapes your record for years afterward, and why the resolution strategy matters from day one.
If your case ended in a conviction, there are limited circumstances under which the record can later be sealed. See our guide on how long a DWI stays on your record in Texas for the waiting periods and eligibility rules.
Yes — first DWIs are dismissed and reduced in Texas, and the path usually runs through the evidence rather than through sympathy. The most common pressure points are the legality of the stop (did the officer have reasonable suspicion?), the basis for the arrest (was there probable cause?), and the reliability of the testing (breath-machine maintenance records, blood-draw chain of custody, and 15-minute observation periods).
When the stop or the arrest cannot be justified, the remedy is a motion to suppress — and if the court suppresses the key evidence, the State is often left unable to proceed. The firm has obtained dismissals on Texas DWI cases through motions to suppress where the stop or the testing did not hold up. Every case is fact-specific, and no outcome is promised; what is promised is that the firm reads the Probable Cause Affidavit before your first consult and tells you, honestly, where the weak points are.
A first DWI moves through predictable stages, and knowing them removes a lot of the fear:
Most first DWIs are resolved without a trial — but the leverage to reach a good resolution is built in the early stages, not the late ones.
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At the Law Office of David D. White, a first-offense DWI defense starts at $5,000 as a flat fee, and standalone ALR representation starts at $1,500 — included at no additional charge when you retain the firm for the DWI on a paid-in-full basis. Flat fees mean you know the cost up front, with no hourly surprises. A full breakdown of criminal-defense fees is on the cost of a criminal defense attorney page.
Because the defense starts with the State’s own paperwork. Before your first consultation, the firm obtains and reads the Probable Cause Affidavit — the sworn document the officer used to justify the arrest — and identifies where the State’s evidence is weakest. The Law Office of David D. White has practiced criminal defense exclusively since 2004 across ten Texas counties — Travis, Williamson, Hays, Caldwell, Lee, Coryell, Bell, Burnet, Milam, and Bastrop — and all three attorneys review every active case together each week. A first DWI is serious, but it is also defendable, and the work begins before you ever walk in the door.
Facing charges in Milam County? Our Milam County criminal defense page covers the local courts and how we handle cases there.
If you are facing a first DWI in Austin, Georgetown, or anywhere in the firm’s ten-county area, call the Law Office of David D. White at (512) 369-3737 for a consultation. Every case is fact-specific, and the firm will give you a straight read on yours.
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David D. White founded the Law Office of David D. White, PLLC and has practiced criminal defense exclusively since 2004. The firm represents clients across Travis, Williamson, Hays, Caldwell, Lee, Coryell, Bell, Burnet, Milam, and Bastrop counties. Three attorneys handle each case as a team — weekly case reviews and shared Clio notes — and by the first consultation, the firm has obtained the Probable Cause Affidavit, read it, and identified the state’s evidentiary weak points.
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This page was written and reviewed by the attorneys at the Law Office of David D. White, PLLC, following our editorial guidelines. The firm has practiced criminal defense exclusively since 2004 across Travis, Williamson, Hays, Caldwell, Lee, Coryell, Bell, Burnet, Milam, and Bastrop County courts. The firm’s three attorneys — David White (managing attorney, practicing criminal defense exclusively since 2004), Kenneth Hines (associate, practicing Caldwell County courts since 2008; former General Counsel to the Texas Senate Jurisprudence Committee, 2010–2012), and Taylor Kacir (associate; former Senior Misdemeanor County Attorney, Bell County Attorney’s Office) — work each case as a team via weekly case reviews and shared Clio notes.
608 West 12th Street, Suite B Austin, TX 78701
706 Rock St, Georgetown, TX 78626
512-369-3737
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