On July 1st, 2008, Georgia DUI laws will get tougher.  The new Georgia DUI law is designed to teach new DUI offenders an additional lesson and increase jail time and consequences for multiple offenders.   The Georgia General Assembly passed House Bill 336 with very little opposition in 2008 legislative session.  Beginning  on July 1st, 2008,  people who plea to or are convicted of driving DUI will be subject to more jail time, a felony record in some cases, and additional DUI classes.  A fourth DUI in Georgia in ten years will be felony if you are arrested after July 1st 2008.   It doesn't matter where the other DUIs occurred as long as the Fourth one is a Georgia DUI.   Your first two DUI convictions or pleas are regular misdemeanors subject to a year in jail or a $1000 fine.  A third Georgia DUI is a high and aggravated misdemeanors which increases the maximum punishment up to $5,000 and a year in jail generally with limited good time credit  for time served, meaning you are likely to serve day for day.  A new  felony DUI conviction will result in a prison sentence of one to five years but can be probated or suspended by the Judge except for 90 days which is mandatory.   Additionally, the measurement for minimum punishments for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd DUIs will increase from 5 years to 10 years.  This means that if you had a DUI  6 years ago and get a second DUI you will be subject to minimum punishments of 72 hours in jail as opposed to 24 hours and the additional requirements of a 2nd in Five DUI like 30 days community service et cetera. 

The new law will make changes in sentencing for first Georgia DUI offenders.  There will be another requirement after a Georgia DUI Defendant completes the Georgia DUI School which is a 20 hour $280 course.  For a first Georgia DUI conviction, in addition to DUI School, fines of $300, and 40 hours of community service offenders will have to take a clinical evaluation and complete a treatment program.

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