Should I File a DDS GA Appeal or Install an IID?

 

By: William C. Head, DUI Specialist for 43 Years, With Highest Lawyer Ratings

Be aware that if your 30-day letter to DDS of Georgia seeking to appeal your pending DMV GA suspension is postmarked (or delivered) a DAY LATE, no extension of time will be granted. Instead of being called DPS or DMV, the agency controlling the issuance and cancellation of driving privileges in the State of Georgia is the Georgia Department of Driver Services, or Georgia DDS, for short.

Assuming that you were written up by a police officer for DUI refusal (i.e., having refused the officer’s requested breath alcohol test or blood collection), your Georgia driver’s license (or your driving privilege in GA, if licensed in another state) will be suspended by DDS Georgia.

The one-year loss of all driving privileges runs from the 46th day after your DUI arrest until 365 days have passed. This loss applies where the person refused to submit or blows into the device, and a test or tests reveal a BAC level over the legal limit.

Because the process to appeal the administrative suspension to the GA DMV is very simple, NO ONE should allow this deadline to pass, unless a DUI specialist is using your default as part of a negotiated deal to obtain, at the least, limited driving privileges in Georgia.

How the Ignition Interlock Device Became a GA DDS 1205 Option for Most Georgia Licensees

Since July 2017, new options for restricted driving privileges after an implied consent law suspension exist. Some drivers (mostly from other states) search the internet for “hardship license GA” and may never find the correct page to inform them of the short deadline (30 days) in which to act (after a DUI arrest).

Find your GA DDS 1205 Form (formerly called a DS-1205 form) and read about your options on the backside. The Georgia implied consent laws under O.C.G.A. 40-5-55, 40-5-67.1, and 40-5-67.2 control the consequences of a refusal to submit. EVERYONE who did not submit to the state CHEMICAL test (an Intoxilyzer 9000 breath test result given or GBI blood collection) should pay their $150 filing fee and request an administrative hearing.

How to Get a Driver’s License After a DUI in Georgia

By filing the DUI administrative license appeal with DDS in Georgia within the THIRTY calendar day deadline, you EXTEND your ability to drive in Georgia. This 30-day filing deadline applies to both Georgia licensees and out-of-state drivers who are licensed in other states. Georgia law requires diligence in protecting your legal rights.

Plus, if your license is administratively suspended for an implied consent violation, you cannot get a work permit for a DUI refusal, but may decide (if done within the 30 “calendar days” deadline) to opt for the ignition interlock device (IID) restricted driving permit and not risk the administrative license suspension appeal being filed at Georgia DDS.

Is the Interlock Device Restricted Driving Permit Your Best Option?

Do not opt for this ignition interlock driver’s license permit option until you have consulted with a top DUI lawyer on the pluses and minuses of this alternative. Many pitfalls and “gotchas” exist under the rules governing the IIDLP (Ignition Interlock Device Limited Permit.)

The GA DDS (which enforces all Georgia DUI laws pertaining to Hardship license Georgia issues) controls the issuance and retention of Georgia driver’s licenses. This agency will be the state legal entity that sends suspension notices to out-of-state DPS, DMV, BMV, and SOS offices for drivers licensed outside the state of Georgia.

Our Atlanta DUI attorneys are ready to get your statement, contact information, and list of available witnesses. If you have already filed an appeal, please understand two things: (a) this appeal may be the WRONG option, and (b) if it is the wrong option, our lawyers in Atlanta may be able to withdraw that filing, and keep you driving on an interlock device.

For a FREE initial criminal case review and to obtain FREE legal advice: Call 404-567-5515, or email our criminal justice attorneys. William Head, Larry Kohn, and ex-cop Cory Yager are all legal book authors and award-winning DUI attorneys. If you need to get information on our legal fee payment plans, just ask.

Related Links to Georgia Driver’s License Topics:

The exact wording of the NEW GA Implied Consent Law NOTICE after Elliott v. State

Text of the landmark Elliott Case From the Georgia Supreme Court

Constitutionality of DUI Checkpoints in Georgia

BAC Chart for Alcohol Level by Weight and Number of Drinks

Obtaining a Georgia ID Card

I passed the Field Sobriety Tests, So Why Was I Arrested?

DDS Georgia Phone Number or see the three primary lines for incoming customer calls:

(678) 413-8400 

(678) 413-8500

(678) 413-8600