Little Rock Drugged Driving Defense Lawyer
Last updated on October 25, 2026
Arkansas can charge you with DWI for drug impairment even when your alcohol level is zero. The State must establish intoxication while you operated or were in actual physical control of a vehicle; a positive drug test does not automatically establish that impairment. A separate license proceeding can begin before the criminal case is decided.
At Wesley Rhodes, Attorney at Law, Wesley Rhodes represents people facing criminal charges in Little Rock and Central Arkansas. He has practiced criminal defense since 2016. A drugged-driving defense requires attention to the testing evidence, the circumstances of the arrest, and the separate deadline to challenge a license suspension.
Seven Calendar Days After Notice
Driver Services must receive your written hearing request within seven calendar days after the suspension notice is given. The trigger is notice, not automatically the arrest date. For notice sent by mail under the statute, the postmark is the delivery date. Keep the notice and envelope, and retain proof that your request was received. Waiting for a court date or laboratory result can cost you the hearing deadline.
What Arkansas Must Establish In A Drug DWI Case
Under Ark. Code §§ 5-65-102 and 5-65-103, intoxication can result from alcohol, a controlled substance, another intoxicant, or a combination. The substance must substantially alter your reactions, motor skills, and judgment so that you present a clear and substantial danger of physical injury or death to yourself or others.
Arkansas has a 0.08 alcohol-concentration offense, but § 5-65-103 does not set an equivalent numerical drug limit. The drug finding must be considered with the evidence of intoxication at the relevant time. Conversely, the prosecution does not always need a chemical test: officer observations and other admissible evidence can support a conviction. (Mace v. State, 328 Ark. 536 (1997).)
The vehicle does not have to be moving when police arrive. An accusation based on actual physical control of a parked vehicle requires a separate examination of where you were, the keys, the engine, and the surrounding circumstances.
A lawful prescription does not authorize driving while intoxicated. Arkansas’s medical-marijuana amendment likewise does not authorize operating or controlling a vehicle while under the influence of marijuana. The prescription, dosage instructions, timing, and medical records can still matter to the defense. See DWI allegations involving prescription medication.
Ark. Code §§ 5-65-102(4), 5-65-103; Ark. Const. amend. 98, § 6(a)(3).
Drug Testing, Blood Draws, And Refusal
| Evidence Or Request | What The Law Requires |
|---|---|
| Breath, Saliva, Or Urine Ark. Code § 5-65-202 |
The implied-consent statute addresses these tests when its arrest, accident, or reasonable-cause conditions apply. A lawful request and the required warnings matter in a refusal case. Implied consent is not a blanket answer to every search challenge. |
| Blood Ark. Code § 5-65-202(c) |
Absent exigent circumstances, a blood test requires a warrant supported by probable cause or your express consent. Exigent circumstances are an emergency justification; they cannot simply be assumed from a DWI accusation. |
| Field Tests And Observations | An officer may rely on balance, speech, behavior, driving, and a drug-recognition evaluation. These observations are evidence to evaluate, not a substitute for establishing the statutory elements. |
| An Additional Chemical Test Ark. Code § 5-65-204(d) |
A person tested at law enforcement’s direction has a right to an additional complete chemical test by a qualified person of their choice. The officer must give written advice about the right and reimbursement if found not guilty, and provide reasonable assistance in obtaining the test. |
A failure to comply with the additional-test requirements can support exclusion of the police-directed test. Arkansas courts apply substantial compliance to the advice requirement and reasonable assistance under the circumstances; they do not require officers to guarantee a successful additional test. When exclusion is sought under this provision, the State bears the burden of showing compliance by a preponderance of the evidence. (Johnson v. State, 2023 Ark. App. 589.)
Drug laboratory evidence also has its own rules. Section 5-65-204(b)(2) exempts State Crime Laboratory methods for controlled-substance or other intoxicant analysis from Department of Health approval. An objection based only on the absence of an alcohol-testing certification may therefore miss the relevant issue. Sample identity, collection, handling, analysis, and interpretation still need review.
Refusal is a separate allegation. Section 5-65-205 specifies license penalties for refusing breath, saliva, or urine testing. Those listed refusal penalties do not include a blood-test refusal. Declining consent to blood collection does not prevent police from seeking a warrant or relying on a legally sufficient emergency justification.
For a qualifying refusal, the administrative penalty is 180 days for a first offense, two years for a second, three years for a third, and lifetime revocation for a fourth, using the statute’s five-year counting rules. The offense is classified as a violation. A drug-only refusal does not qualify for the first-refusal alcohol interlock exception, and a hardship permit is unavailable under the applicable refusal restrictions.
Ark. Code §§ 5-65-202, 5-65-204, 5-65-205, and 5-65-120(d). Refusal and drug-DWI suspensions have separate legal grounds; do not assume one replaces the other.
Protecting Your License Before The Criminal Case Ends
The administrative hearing addresses whether the legal grounds for suspension exist, including the officer’s reasonable grounds and applicable testing or refusal issues. The State must establish its case by a preponderance of the evidence, a lower burden than proof beyond a reasonable doubt in the criminal case. Winning the license hearing does not dispose of the criminal charge.
The license receipt can serve as a temporary permit for up to 30 days if your license was valid and unexpired. A hearing request alone does not stay the suspension. The statute calls for a hearing within 20 days; if Driver Services cannot hold it within that period, it must issue a temporary permit valid until the hearing. Confirm what permit or order actually authorizes you to drive. Driving while suspended for DWI can lead to a separate charge under § 5-65-105.
An adverse hearing order can be challenged by a petition for a new determination in circuit court within 30 days after the order is issued. The petition must include the order and be served as the statute requires. Filing it does not itself stop the suspension, although the court can grant a stay. See Arkansas DWI license suspension procedures.
Dismissal Or Acquittal Does Not Complete Reinstatement
A dismissal or acquittal reverses the administrative suspension tied to that charge and provides for reinstatement at no cost for that suspension. You must still furnish proof of the court outcome, apply to Driver Services, and be granted reinstatement before driving. Do not treat the court order alone as a restored license.
Check each suspension separately. Dismissal of the DWI charge does not resolve a separate refusal charge or an unrelated license hold. Obtain confirmation of your current driving status and any remaining requirements. Section 5-65-402(e) keeps the restriction in place until you apply for and receive reinstatement.
Ark. Code § 5-65-402(a)-(g), particularly (a)(7), (c), (d)(2)(B), (e), and (g)(1).
Drug-DWI Suspension Periods And Restricted Driving
| Qualifying Drug-DWI Offense | Administrative License Consequence |
|---|---|
| First Offense | Six-month suspension. |
| Second Within Five Years | Twenty-four-month suspension. |
| Third Within Five Years | Thirty-month suspension. |
| Fourth Or Later Within Five Years | Four-year revocation, with no restricted permit during that period. |
Ark. Code § 5-65-104(a). Driver Services applies the statute’s prior-offense counting rules, which can include qualifying administrative suspensions. These periods are different from the refusal periods above.
The interlock restricted-license provisions for alcohol DWI do not apply to the controlled-substance suspensions specified in § 5-65-104. A first drug-DWI suspension may instead qualify for a discretionary hardship permit under § 5-65-120. Driver Services must find extreme and unusual hardship, no adequate transportation alternative, and compliance with the statute’s driving-record and public-safety conditions.
An approved permit specifies when and why you may drive, such as work, school, a qualifying education or treatment program, or medical care. It is not an unrestricted license. Section 5-65-120 excludes a second or subsequent covered offense within five years; a separate refusal suspension can also block relief. Do not install an interlock and assume that authorizes driving in a drug case.
When reinstatement rests on completing the suspension rather than dismissal or acquittal, education or treatment, applicable victim-impact-panel requirements, fees, and an approved reinstatement application can remain necessary. Letting the suspension period expire does not by itself restore driving privileges.
Criminal Penalties For Drugged Driving
Drug DWI uses the criminal sentencing provisions of the Omnibus DWI Act. The following imprisonment ranges apply without the higher minimums for a passenger under 16 and without a separate enhancement:
| Offense Level | Imprisonment Range |
|---|---|
| First: Unclassified Misdemeanor Ark. Code § 5-65-111(a) |
24 hours to one year. |
| Second Within Ten Years: Unclassified Misdemeanor | Seven days to one year. |
| Third Within Ten Years: Unclassified Misdemeanor | 90 days to one year. |
| Fourth Within Ten Years: Unclassified Felony | One to six years. |
| Fifth Within Ten Years: Unclassified Felony | Two to ten years. |
| Sixth Or Later Within Twenty Years: Class B Felony | Five to twenty years before any applicable enhancement. |
Ark. Code §§ 5-65-111 and 5-4-401. Earlier offense dates can require an earlier version of the law. The five-year administrative-license lookback is not the ten-year criminal-sentencing lookback.
For the first three offenses, § 5-65-111 permits court-ordered public service instead of imprisonment, subject to its requirements and a written explanation. A passenger under 16 raises the imprisonment minimums to seven days for a first offense, 30 days for a second, 120 days for a third, two years for a fourth, and three years for a fifth. Public-service alternatives for the first three offenses have their own statutory requirements.
Section 5-65-112 sets fines at $150-$1,000 for a first offense, $400-$3,000 for a second within five years, and $900-$5,000 for a third or later within five years. Its five-year language differs from the incarceration statute. Court costs and other required expenses are separate. Bring prior judgments so the criminal, fine, and license calculations can each be checked.
DWI has special limits on negotiated resolutions. Section 5-65-107 prohibits reducing the DWI charge; it is not an ordinary plea bargain to a lesser driving offense. Section 5-65-108 excludes Act 346 first-offender probation. It allows probationary supervision to monitor compliance in addition to mandatory penalties, not as a substitute for them. Read more about the consequences of a DWI conviction.
Evidence That Can Change The Defense
The Timeline And Observations
Compare driving and body-camera recordings with the report. Identify the time of medication use, driving, arrest, and collection. Preserve medical records that explain an injury or condition relevant to the officer’s observations or the way field tests were performed.
The Sample And Laboratory Record
Check whose sample was tested, how it was collected and stored, what the laboratory identified, and what conclusions the result supports about intoxication at the relevant time. The report’s finding and the legal question of impairment are different issues.
For a drug-only accusation, the required mental state also matters. Section 5-65-103(c) makes alcohol-related DWI a strict-liability offense; § 5-2-203 supplies the default requirement of purposeful, knowing, or reckless conduct when no mental state is specified and no exception applies. Read together with Leeka v. State, 2015 Ark. 183, these provisions make medication warnings and an unexpected reaction relevant issues to investigate. They do not create an automatic prescription defense.
A search challenge should identify the legal basis for the stop, the arrest, and the sample collection. Review the warrant affidavit or claimed consent or emergency, along with recordings and medical collection records. A constitutional search challenge must concern a violation of your own protected rights. Under Arkansas Rule of Criminal Procedure 16.2, a suppression motion ordinarily must be filed at least ten days before trial, subject to good cause. Exclusion requires a substantial violation or another constitutional basis; it is not automatic whenever an officer makes a mistake.
Excluding a test does not automatically end the prosecution if other admissible evidence supports the charge. See the Arkansas search-and-seizure guide and the discussion of field sobriety evidence. If the arrest also produces a drug possession charge, its elements and evidence require separate review.
What To Bring To A Consultation
- The suspension notice, envelope, and temporary permit: These establish the notice date, hearing deadline, and claimed driving authority.
- All citations, court dates, and release conditions: The license hearing and criminal case have separate schedules and requirements.
- Prescription and medical records: Keep original labels, instructions, relevant treatment records, and a private timeline for your lawyer. Do not delay necessary medical care.
- Testing paperwork and witness information: Preserve consent forms, additional-test requests, receipts, photographs, and names of people who observed you. Prompt preservation helps prevent loss of recordings and other evidence.
- Prior judgments and license records: Different lookback rules can change the available permit, classification, jail range, and fine.
Speak privately with counsel before discussing the suspected offense with investigators or posting about it. Statements about what you took, when you took it, or who was driving can become evidence.
Charged With Drugged Driving In Arkansas?
Review the charge, testing evidence, and license notice with Wesley Rhodes. Driver Services must receive a written hearing request within seven calendar days after notice is given, so bring that paperwork promptly.
If you’re facing a drugged-driving charge in Little Rock, North Little Rock, Conway, Benton, or elsewhere in Central Arkansas, call 501-301-4591 or contact us online to schedule a free consultation.
This page reflects Arkansas law as of October 2026. It is general information, not legal advice about your specific case.