DUI (F.S. § 316.193); REFUSAL TO SUBMIT TO DUI TESTING (F.S. § 316.1939); DANGEROUS EXCESSIVE SPEEDING 100+ MPH (F.S. § 316.1922)
DUI REDUCED TO RECKLESS DRIVING — JAIL SENTENCE AVOIDED
Walton County, FL
June 17, 2026
Client was charged in Walton County with DUI, Refusal to Submit to DUI Testing, and Dangerous Excessive Speeding at 100 miles per hour or more — a charge created by Florida's 2025 legislation converting extreme speeding from a civil infraction into a criminal offense. The combination carried jail exposure on multiple counts, mandatory license revocation, DUI school, community service, ignition interlock, and the FR-44 high-risk insurance requirement that follows a Florida DUI conviction for years. The State's opening position, delivered with discovery, was adjudication of guilt on all three counts plus 10 days in the county jail.
A DUI conviction in Florida can never be sealed or expunged; it is permanent and publicly accessible for life. That permanence made a reduction of the charge, rather than a favorable sentence on it, the only outcome worth pursuing, and the defense continued to litigate rather than negotiate from the State's opening offer. The State ultimately agreed to reduce the DUI to Reckless Driving. The client entered a plea to Reckless Driving and to the refusal count with 12 months of probation, multi-offender DUI school, a Level II substance abuse evaluation and any recommended treatment, 50 hours of community service, abstinence from alcohol during supervision, and a 12-month license suspension. The jail sentence was gone, and the client does not carry a DUI conviction. Past results do not guarantee future outcomes; each case depends on its facts and circumstances.