Little Rock DWI License Suspension Lawyer

An Arkansas DWI arrest can lead to a license suspension before your criminal case is decided. The officer takes your license, but a valid temporary permit can allow continued driving. Your first priority is the separate deadline to challenge the suspension, which can arrive long before your court date.

At Wesley Rhodes, Attorney at Law, Wesley Rhodes handles DWI charges and the related license proceedings in Little Rock and Central Arkansas. He has practiced criminal defense since 2016. The license case requires its own response: preserving the hearing deadline, contesting the stated grounds, and identifying any lawful restricted-driving or reinstatement option.

When The Suspension Takes Effect

If the license seized at arrest is unexpired and otherwise appears valid, the officer issues a dated receipt that serves as a temporary driving permit for up to 30 days. That receipt also gives notice of a suspension effective in 30 days. Taking the physical license and ending the legal privilege to drive are different events. A receipt doesn’t clear an existing suspension or make an expired license valid.

For notice mailed under § 5-65-402, the postmark date is treated as the delivery date. Keep the envelope along with the notice. The statute provides for a hearing within 20 days and requires a temporary permit until the hearing if Driver Services cannot hold it within that period. A hearing request alone does not pause the suspension; confirm the authority you actually have before driving.

What The License Hearing Decides

The administrative hearing is a civil proceeding. The State bears the burden by a preponderance of the evidence, meaning the required facts must be more likely true than not. The hearing addresses the officer’s reasonable grounds to believe you were operating or in actual physical control of a vehicle while intoxicated, impaired, or over the applicable alcohol limit, along with the issues that apply to your test or refusal.

The hearing officer considers the arresting agency’s documents, documents you submit, and your statement. Driver Services cannot compel witnesses or documents, and the hearing is not recorded. It can be held by telephone. These limits make preparation important: identify missing records and factual disagreements before the hearing. The administrative ruling does not decide the criminal DWI case.

If Driver Services rules against you, § 5-65-402(c) allows a petition for de novo review, meaning a new determination, within 30 days in the circuit court of the county where the offense occurred. The decision must be attached and the Secretary of the Department of Finance and Administration served under Civil Rule 4. Filing does not stop the suspension; a court-issued stay is needed for that relief. Bring the written decision to your lawyer promptly.

What Dismissal Or Acquittal Changes

Ark. Code § 5-65-402(d)(2)(B) requires reversal of the covered administrative suspension when the charge supporting it is dismissed or results in acquittal. Driver Services must reinstate the affected privilege at no cost, and that charge cannot count toward a future administrative suspension. An earlier adverse license-hearing decision does not eliminate this protection.

The disposition still has to reach Driver Services, and reinstatement must be granted:

• Obtain proof of the disposition. The court paperwork should identify the charge and its dismissal or acquittal.
• Submit that proof and apply for reinstatement. Section 5-65-402(g) expressly provides this route.
• Check each remaining hold. A separate refusal suspension, commercial disqualification, or unrelated licensing ground needs its own review.
• Confirm approval before driving. Under § 5-65-402(e), the restriction continues until you apply for and are granted reinstatement.

For example, dismissal of a DWI charge does not dispose of a separate refusal charge that remains pending or results in conviction. The DWI-based suspension and the refusal-based suspension must be matched to their respective outcomes. The right to reverse one suspension does not clear every other hold.

How Long DWI And Refusal Suspensions Last

DWI and chemical-test refusal have separate licensing schedules. The table shows ordinary-license consequences under their five-year repeat-offense rules. Refusal under § 5-65-205 concerns qualifying breath, saliva, or urine tests; it is not a penalty for declining every test an officer might request.

Ark. Code §§ 5-65-104(a) and 5-65-205(b)-(c). These periods do not replace the separate rules for underage DUI or commercial driving.

The prior-offense count can include qualifying convictions and earlier administrative suspensions, not just the convictions you remember. Bring the dispositions from earlier cases: § 5-65-402 excludes dismissed or acquitted charges from future administrative counting. The five-year licensing window also differs from the criminal sentencing rules. Review repeat DWI penalties before assuming that an older offense no longer matters.

When Restricted Driving Is Available

Alcohol DWI And First Refusal

For a first, second, or third alcohol DWI within the applicable five-year rules, an ignition-interlock restricted license is available immediately if Driver Services allows its issuance. For a first refusal, that option is limited to an alcohol-related arrest. Driver Services must verify the required installation and issue the restricted license. Paying for or installing the device alone does not authorize driving.

A second or subsequent refusal within five years does not qualify for the interlock option under § 5-65-205 or a hardship permit under § 5-65-120. First-refusal hardship permits are also barred. See chemical-test refusal in Arkansas for the separate charge and covered tests.

Controlled-Substance DWI

The interlock provisions do not apply to a controlled-substance DWI suspension under § 5-65-104. An eligible first offender may request a hardship permit under § 5-65-120. Driver Services must find extreme and unusual hardship and no adequate alternative transportation for an authorized purpose, such as work, school, an alcohol education or treatment program, or medical care. After reviewing the five-year driving record, it must also find that the applicant is not a multiple traffic-law offender or does not present a threat to the public.

Issuance is discretionary, and the permit specifies when and under what circumstances driving is allowed. That hardship route is barred for a second or subsequent DWI within five years. A separate refusal suspension can also prevent driving. The drugged-driving allegation and each licensing ground must be evaluated separately.

Interlock Compliance And Completion

When an interlock requirement applies, waiting out the calendar does not substitute for completing it. Section 5-65-118 requires proof of installation for the entire required period, periodic verification, and servicing and monitoring at least every 67 days.

Under Act 841, effective July 1, 2026, specified violations during the final 60 days of the original interlock period or during an extension can result in a 60-day extension. These include readings above .025%, missed random retests, and missed required servicing. The statute has exceptions: a qualifying retest below .025% within ten minutes with an image confirming the same person, or an image showing the person was not in the vehicle when a random retest was missed.

At completion, request the provider’s compliance certificate and present it to Driver Services to remove the restriction. If the provider reports a violation, you can request reconsideration and submit compliance evidence. A confirmed violation extends the period by 60 days. Keep service reports, test results, and relevant device images; don’t assume the original end date authorizes unrestricted driving.

A different consequence applies if Driver Services finds a violation of the interlock prohibitions in § 5-65-123: § 5-65-118(d) requires revocation of the restricted license and reinstatement of the suspension for the original suspension term. The 60-day extension procedure is not the only possible consequence.

Limited First-Offense Waivers

A first DWI offender can petition the court for an interlock waiver under § 5-65-118(g) for required use of an employer’s vehicle in the course of employment when the driver does not own or control the business; a doctor’s certification that the driver cannot provide a deep-lung breath sample; or the absence of a certified provider within 100 miles of home. Obtain the court order and confirm its effect with Driver Services. A waiver does not itself restore a suspended license.

Underage Drivers And Commercial Licenses

Underage DUI And Refusal

Underage DUI has a separate licensing schedule under § 5-65-304: 90 days for a first offense, one year for a second while underage, and revocation until age 21 or for three years, whichever is longer, for a third or subsequent offense while underage. Underage refusal under § 5-65-310 follows the same durations. Being under 21 does not guarantee that schedule; a driver charged under the main DWI statute faces the DWI licensing rules instead. The exact charge matters.

Commercial Driving Privileges

Under § 27-23-112, a CDL holder faces a one-year disqualification for a first qualifying DWI conviction or refusal even in a personal vehicle. The period is three years for a covered incident while operating a commercial vehicle transporting placarded hazardous materials. A second qualifying incident can mean lifetime disqualification. Reinstatement after ten years is discretionary for eligible disqualifications and requires voluntary entry into and successful completion of an approved rehabilitation program; it is not automatic.

An Arkansas court cannot issue a restricted permit to operate a commercial motor vehicle. A personal-vehicle interlock license does not restore disqualified commercial privileges, and reinstatement of an ordinary license does not clear a separate commercial hold.

Reinstatement When The Suspension Remains In Place

If the charge has not been dismissed or resolved by acquittal, obtain the requirements for your specific record. Depending on the suspension, the required submissions include:

• Approved education or treatment: proof of completion of the program required under the applicable statute.
• Victim-impact-panel attendance: the completion certificate where required.
• Interlock compliance: proof of the required installation period and the applicable completion certification.
• Reinstatement fees: payment of the fees that remain legally due for each licensing ground.

Section 5-65-119 calculates the DWI/refusal reinstatement fee at $150 per separate calendar-date occurrence, subject to the statutory removal rules. It does not impose a separate $150 fee for each allegation from the same date. The $25 fees under the underage DUI and refusal statutes are supplemental to other applicable fees, so $25 is not necessarily the total. Reversal after dismissal or acquittal follows the separate no-cost procedure explained above.

Confirm that Driver Services has accepted the documents and granted reinstatement. After a revocation, also confirm the examination requirements for obtaining a new license. Criminal fines, court costs, and other court-ordered obligations remain separate issues.

Driving during a DWI-law suspension or revocation is an unclassified misdemeanor under § 5-65-105, carrying 10 to 90 days in jail and a possible fine up to $1,000. Do not drive on the assumption that an elapsed end date or favorable court result has restored your license. See driving on a suspended or revoked license.

Bring The Records That Establish Your Options

Bring the suspension notice and envelope, temporary permit, hearing decision, charging documents, and prior court dispositions. Those records establish deadlines, the stated licensing grounds, and which prior offenses count. Include test paperwork, interlock reports, and completion certificates so missing proof can be identified. If you need a hardship permit, bring your work or school schedule, relevant medical appointments, and information showing why other transportation is inadequate.

Related Guides

If you’re facing a DWI license suspension 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.