The criminal case
DUI penalties in Massachusetts
The offense, qualifying priors and statutory conditions matter—not just an arrest count.
DUI penalties in Massachusetts depend on the charged offense and its statutory conditions. Prior convictions, their dates, and aggravating factors may change the applicable rule. An arrest count alone does not establish the offense tier, and a minimum sentence is not the complete sentencing range. The cited rules below are not predictions of a particular case’s outcome.
The lookback period
- How far back priors count
- Not published yet. We show a figure only once it has been confirmed against the official source and dated.This varies widely between states — from a few years to a lifetime — so it is not safe to assume a national figure.
Penalty rules by offense number
- First offense
- Base OUI penalty: $500–$5,000 fine, up to 2½ years imprisonment, or both.
- This is the base penalty under § 24(1)(a)(1), not a prediction of sentence. Statutory alternative dispositions, assessments and license consequences are separate.
- Second offense
- Not published yet. We show a figure only once it has been confirmed against the official source and dated.
- Third offense
- Not published yet. We show a figure only once it has been confirmed against the official source and dated.
Driving privileges, ignition interlock and insurance requirements need separate review under their own rules. A commercial-driving restriction may have different triggers from a restriction on an ordinary licence. No consequence is assumed merely because it appears in this list.
- Ignition interlock, first offense
- Not published yet. We show a figure only once it has been confirmed against the official source and dated.
The two legal questions
The criminal charge and driving privileges can involve different proceedings. The notice, order and cited rule identify the applicable process.
Driving privileges
The licence case
- Forum
- The agency or court identified by the applicable licence proceeding
- Clock
- Check the applicable notice or order for the deadline and its starting event
- Deadline to request a hearing
- Under § 24(1)(g), a refusal suspension carries a right to an RMV hearing within 15 days of suspension. A suspension based on breath-test results under § 24(1)(f)(2) has a separate 10-day window to request a court hearing.
- These are the procedures under § 24(1)(f)–(g), not a universal deadline for every Massachusetts suspension. A court-ordered suspension under § 24N is a separate proceeding; the legal basis identified in the suspension notice matters.
- The 15-day provision describes the refusal-hearing window; it is not a promise that submitting a request on the final day secures a later hearing. The 10-day court procedure is a limited challenge based on a qualifying comparison blood test, not a general rehearing of the OUI charge.
- Suspension under the cited rule
- For the chemical-test-result suspension under § 24(1)(f)(2): until disposition of the underlying offense, but no more than 30 days under that provision.
- The suspension begins immediately upon receipt of the police officer’s notice of intent to suspend. This is not the refusal-suspension period or the suspension following an OUI conviction.
- Separate provisions can impose additional consequences, including rules for drivers under 21. The 30-day limit here is not a guarantee that all driving privileges return after 30 days.
Criminal charge
The criminal case
- Forum
- A criminal court
- Clock
- Check court notices and orders; no case duration is predicted here
- Alcohol-concentration threshold
- Not published yet. We show a figure only once it has been confirmed against the official source and dated.
- First-offense penalty rule
- Base OUI penalty: $500–$5,000 fine, up to 2½ years imprisonment, or both.
- This is the base penalty under § 24(1)(a)(1), not a prediction of sentence. Statutory alternative dispositions, assessments and license consequences are separate.