1 year DL Suspension
1 year DL Suspension
1 year DL Suspension
Refusal up to BAC of .09
BAC .10-.15
BAC .16 and above
$3800-$6300 Fine
$5000-$7500 Fine
$7500-$10,000 Fine
DUI 3rd
60 Days up to 3 Years in Jail
90 Days up to 4 Years in Jail
120 Days up to 5 Years
2-4 year DL Suspension 2-4 year DL Suspension 2-4 year DL Suspension
Refusal up to BAC of .09
BAC .10-.15
BAC .16 and above
1-5 Years in Jail 3-7 Years in Jail 2-4 year DL Suspension 2-4 year DL Suspension 2-4 year DL Suspension 2-6 Years in Jail
DUI 4th
$5,100-$10,100 30 days – 15 years
$10,100-$25,100 1 year – 25 years
Great Bodily Injury
Causing Death
Suspension for term plus 3 years
Suspension for term plus 5 years
An important additional sanction is a requirement to install an Ignition Interlock Device (IID). South Carolina’s IID law is often referred to as "Emma's Law" after Emma Longstreet, a six-year-old girl who tragically lost her life in a DUI-related crash in 2012. During the entire time period that covers the case data in this report, IIDs were required for those convicted of repeat offenses, which we don’t track, or first-time convicted offenders with a BAC of .15 or higher. Our Court Monitors reported few references to IIDs in court when they were attending. Part of this may be due to the fact that those convicted who blew a reading of more than .15 were sometimes offered to plead guilty to DUI at a lower BAC, allowing them to avoid the IID but getting the prosecution a DUI conviction. In 2023, the state passed a strengthened version of Emma’s Law, making South Carolina the 35 th state to require all convicted DUI offenders, except those who have no detectable alcohol when they give a breath test, to have an IID installed for some period of time (six months on first offense). It went into effect on May 19 th , 2024. This could have an impact on DUI prosecution and conviction rates as some may be less likely to plead guilty and might fight harder to avoid the IID. Most importantly, research from other states suggests we should see fewer drunk driving fatalities as IIDs are highly effective at reducing repeat offenses. The cases we focus on are first offense misdemeanors. After reviewing the sanctions data, most of the fines we saw fell somewhere between $400 and $1,300. We saw an increase in requests for installment payments during the years of 2020-2022. This is most likely due to COVID-19 and the financial repercussions of the pandemic. Requests
Made with FlippingBook interactive PDF creator