Nevada DUI Laws & Penalties

Nevada DUI laws make it a crime to drive while under the influence of alcohol or drugs, or to drive with a BAC of .08% or greater as measured within 2 hours of driving. The BAC limit is lowered to .04% for commercial drivers and .02% for drivers under the age of 21.

If you get arrested for a first-time DUI in Nevada, it is generally treated as a misdemeanor. You will be facing 2 days to 6 months in jail, $400 to $1,000 in fines, online DUI School, attending a Victim Impact Panel, and a 185-day driver’s license suspension.

But defendants may get a restricted license immediately by installing an ignition interlock device in their cars.

Subsequent DUIs, or DUIs causing substantial bodily harm, carry harsher sentences.

In this article, our Las Vegas DUI lawyers will answer the following key questions.

• 1. What are the penalties for 1st-time DUI in Nevada?
• 2. What are the penalties for 2nd-time DUI?
• 3. What are the penalties for 3rd-time DUI?
• 4. What are the penalties if DUI causes injury or death?
• 5. What are the penalties for DUI after a felony DUI?
• 6. What if there was a child in the car?
• 7. Can DUI be reduced or dismissed?

1. What are the penalties for 1st-time DUI in Nevada?

It is a misdemeanor to be in actual physical control of a vehicle while impaired or with an illegal BAC as long as no one else gets seriously hurt. Typically, the judge imposes no jail as long as the defendant completes all of the other requirements.

If you are convicted of first-time DUI in Nevada, the standard penalties include:

1. 2 days to 6 months in jail or 24 to 96 hours of community service. But in most cases, the judge grants a 6-month suspended sentence; therefore, you do no jail unless you fail to complete the other sentencing terms below;
2. DUI School, which is an alcohol awareness program at your own expense;
3. Fines ranging from $400 to $1,000 plus court costs. Las Vegas courts usually impose a $685 to $810 fine;
4. Attendance at a Nevada Victim Impact Panel, such as a MADD lecture that warns against drinking and driving;
5. If you are under 21 or if your blood alcohol concentration (BAC) was 0.18% or greater, an alcohol/drug dependency evaluation that costs $100;
6. If your BAC was 0.18% or greater, an alcohol or drug abuse treatment program;
7. If your BAC was 0.18% or greater, a breath interlock device (also called “ignition interlock device”, or IID) in your car for 12 to 36 months. If your BAC was less than 0.18, the court may order the breath interlock device for 3 to 6 months; and
8. A 185-day driver’s license revocation by the Department of Motor Vehicles and a $35 civil penalty fee. However, you may be able to get a restricted license from the DMV if you drive with a breath interlock device.

Note that you may be able to avoid jail and get your charge dismissed if you complete the Misdemeanor DUI Court program. This is an intensive rehabilitation program, and not everyone is eligible. You may be ordered to wear a SCRAM anklet that detects alcohol in your system.¹

Also note that a first DUI conviction of driving under the influence must remain on your criminal record for seven years before you may seal it.² (Learn more about sealing drunk/drugged driving records in Nevada.)

2. What are the penalties for 2nd-time DUI?

It is also a misdemeanor as long as no one else gets seriously hurt. But unlike first offenses, second-time offenses carry some mandatory jail time because of the prior conviction.

The standard second offense DUI punishment under the Nevada DUI statute NRS 484C.400 includes:

1. 10 days to 6 months in jail or residential confinement;
2. Fines ranging from $750 to $1,000 or an equivalent number of hours of community service. Las Vegas courts usually impose a $1,100 fine (which includes court costs);
3. Attendance at a Nevada Victim Impact Panel;
4. An alcohol/drug dependency evaluation that costs $100;
5. A controlled substance abuse or alcohol treatment program;
6. A breath interlock device in your car for 185 days;
7. If your BAC from the chemical test was 0.18% or greater, a breath interlock device in your car for 12 to 36 months as a condition of reinstating your license; and
8. A 1-year Nevada suspension of driving privileges (with no early reinstatement), a 5-day registration suspension, and a $35 civil penalty fee

Note that DUI lawyers may be able to help you avoid jail and get your charge dismissed if you complete the Misdemeanor DUI Court program. This is an intensive rehabilitation program, and not everyone is eligible. You may be ordered to wear a SCRAM anklet that detects alcohol in your system.³

Like first-time convictions, second-time convictions of driving under the influence of alcohol must remain on your criminal record for seven years before you may get it sealed.⁴

3. What are the penalties for 3rd-time DUI?

A third-time drunk or drugged driving conviction within seven years of the first is always a category B felony in Nevada. It makes no difference if no one got injured.

The standard third DUI punishment under NRS 484C.400 are:

1. 1 to 6 years in Nevada State Prison (usually in a minimum-security facility segregated from violent offenders);
2. Fines ranging from $2,000 to $5,000;
3. Attendance at a Victim Impact Panel;
4. A breath interlock device in your car for 12 to 36 months after your release;
5. An alcohol/drug dependency evaluation; and
6. A 3-year driver’s license suspension or revocation, a 5-day registration suspension, and a $35 civil penalty fee

Note that you may be able to avoid prison and a felony conviction if you complete the Felony DUI Court program. This is an intensive rehabilitation program, and not everyone is eligible. You may be ordered to wear a SCRAM anklet that detects whether there is alcohol in your system.⁵

Also note that a third-time conviction of driving under the influence may never be sealed from your criminal record.⁶

For more information, go to our article on multiple convictions of driving under the influence.

4. What are the penalties if DUI causes injury or death?

This is a category B felony. It makes no difference if you had a clean criminal record prior to the incident.

The standard “drunk/drugged driving with injury or death” punishment under the DUI statute NRS 484C.430 includes:

• 2 to 20 years in prison (usually in a minimum-security facility segregated from violent offenders);
• Fines ranging from $2,000 to $5,000;
• Attendance at a Victim Impact Panel; and
• A breath interlock device in your car for 12 to 36 months after your release

The judge may not grant probation in lieu of incarceration.⁷ And as with third-time drunk/drugged driving, causing injury or death by driving under the influence may never be sealed from your criminal record.⁸

Note that DUI offenders with three prior drunk/drugged driving convictions who then cause a drunk/drugged driving death instead face charges for vehicular homicide.

Vehicular homicide is a category A felony carrying:

• 25 years in prison or a life sentence with the possibility of parole after 10 years;
• Attendance at a Victim Impact Panel; and
• A breath interlock device in your car for 12 to 36 months after your release⁹

Vehicular homicide convictions may never be sealed from your criminal record.¹⁰

5. What are the penalties for DUI after a felony DUI?

People with a prior felony drunk/drugged driving conviction will automatically be charged with a felony for any future DUIs. It makes no difference if those future incidents cause no injuries.

Driving under the influence following a felony DUI conviction is a category B felony. The penalties under NRS 484C.410 include:

• 2 to 15 years in prison (usually in a minimum-security facility segregated from violent offenders);
• Fines ranging from $2,000 to $5,000;
• Attendance at a Victim Impact Panel; and
• A breath interlock device in your car for 12 to 36 months after your release¹¹

Also see our article on fourth-time DUIs.

6. What if there was a child in the car?

Nevada drinking and driving laws are harsher when there is a child under age 15 in the vehicle. For instance, the judge in a first-time drunk driving case may order the maximum fine of $1,000 instead of a lesser fine.¹²

Learn more in our article on drunk/drugged driving with a child.

7. Can DUI be reduced or dismissed?

NRS DUI statutes forbid prosecutors from reducing or dismissing DUI charges unless the evidence is weak.¹³ (NRS 484C.420 – .440.) So the criminal defense attorney’s job is to show these prosecutors that their case has too many holes to win at trial.

Ideally, the DUI attorney can persuade the prosecutor to dismiss the drunk/drugged charge completely or else reduce the charge to reckless driving. There are various defenses, such as:

• The field sobriety tests were administered incorrectly
• The blood test or breath test was defective
• You were never in actual physical control of the vehicle
• The police officer did not have reasonable suspicion to make a traffic stop
• Law enforcement did not have probable cause to make a DUI arrest

Also see our article about violating probation for driving under the influence.

Our DUI defense lawyers serve clients throughout the state, including Las Vegas, NV, Henderson, Clark County, and Reno.

¿Habla español? Obtener información acerca de las sanciones por conducir bajo la influencia en Nevada.

In California? Go to our article on California drunk and drugged driving penalties.

In Colorado? Go to our article on Colorado drunk and drugged driving penalties.

Legal References