An Ignition Interlock Device is a monitor device that prevents people from driving a car under the influence of drinking. This is a device that is mandatory for people to have in their vehicles when they have been suspended for driving under the influence of alcohol. When your license is suspended for a DUI offense, you will have to buy this device from a manufacturing company that will be in charge of monitoring the driving habits of the person suspended from driving. If the suspended driver fails the breath analyzer, the manufacturing company has an obligation to tell the motor vehicle department as far as a “hit” or an infringement when a driver consumes alcohol and the interlock device recognizes the substance on his or her breath. The motor vehicle department’s responsibility is to oversee and ensure that drivers have it in their cars and are using it properly for the time frame that their sentence depicts.
Arizona Ignition Interlock Device Mandatory and Permissive Requirements Mandatory
There is the Mandatory ignition interlock device (IID) requirement and the Permissive ignition interlock device requirement. The Mandatory IID requirement is applied after conviction for a DUI and depending upon which level of DUI a person is convicted of, you are required to have an ignition interlock device installed in your car. For the first offense, it is a regular DUI wherein you are faced with a sentence of over a year. This sentence can get reduced to 6 months if you do not have any tampering or problems with the device. You will then receive a letter citing that you may remove the interlock device from your vehicle. If you get caught with an alcohol level of .15 then your sentence will be a year-long sentence and if your alcohol level exceeds .20, your sentence will be a year and a half long. These are all mandatory for people who have been caught and are sentenced according to their alcohol level.
Many people choose to avoid driving at all and this is accepted but when they have to take the driver’s wheel, they will have to have this device present in their cars. This is not something a person can choose to ignore as there is no alternative to having to test your breathing on the device for alcohol detection.
Permissive Interlock Device requirement
The Permissive ignition interlock device requirement pertains to if you get convicted of a second offense of DUI within 7 years of the first one, the law requires that your licensed be revoked for a period of a year, which means that you will not be able to drive for that time period. However, if you choose to put an interlock device in your vehicle in a 90 days span after you have been convicted, then it will now be possible to be able to drive during that ramification period.
Arizona Ignition Interlock Device DUI Types
Standard Misdemeanor DUI
The Standard Misdemeanor DUI pertains to a person caught under the influence of alcohol with a level of .08 to .15. Upon being caught, a person is looking at a sentence of 1-to days in jail. Most of the people on a first offense normally do a day in jail.
Second Misdemeanor DUI
The Second Misdemeanor DUI pertains to a person caught with an alcohol level of .15 or .20. This person is facing a more serious DUI, wherein he or she is looking at 30 days to 6 months in jail. This sentence is also for those who have prior charges of DUI within the span of 7 years.
Aggravated DUI Class 4 Offense
An Aggravated DUI is the third offense wherein a person is caught under the influence and has two prior convictions for DUI. The third offense is now considered a felony which the offender will have a very difficult time to get rid of.
Aggravated DUI Class 6 Felony
This pertains to people who drive under the influence with a child present in the vehicle under the age of 15. This leads to a person having a felony on his or her record and some more time spent in jail.
Arizona DUI Jail Time
DUI Jail Time is mandatory punishments given by judges to drivers who are caught in the act of driving under the influence. There is no probation or community service that will act as a substitute to the mandatory jail time a person must face in getting caught driving under the influence. The jail time is not guaranteed as if you are charged with the DUI then that means that you are not yet convicted of the act. The jail time upon conviction, whether it is a trial or plea agreement, will be a time span of 24 hours to 6 months at a time. It is a very serious offense that you will need to consider before driving under the influence, as it may even get you in prison which will leave you with a permanent record that may hamper you from getting a good job. The danger of facing time in prison far outweighs the act of leaving your car in a place and taking public transportation home when intoxicated. It would be wise to do this as you avoid breaking the law.
