Arkansas DWI Laws: Penalties, Lookback Period, and Interlock

Arkansas DWI laws sort offenses into a tiered system: a first, second, or third conviction is a misdemeanor, and a fourth or later within the state’s lookback window is a felony. Penalties climb sharply at each step and get worse if your blood alcohol concentration was 0.15% or higher or a child was in the car. A recent change stretched the felony lookback period, so older convictions that once fell off your record can now be used to elevate a new charge.¹

What Counts as a DWI

Arkansas sets the legal limit at 0.08% BAC for drivers 21 and older.² Drivers under 21 face a zero-tolerance threshold of 0.02%, a level most people reach after a single drink. A BAC of 0.15% or higher triggers enhanced fine ranges at every offense level.

The law also covers impairment from controlled substances and prescription medications. There is no set concentration limit for drugs like marijuana, which can stay detectable for weeks after use, so officers rely on field sobriety evaluations and oral fluid testing at the roadside.

How the Lookback Period Counts Prior Convictions

The lookback period sets how far back prosecutors can reach when deciding what offense level to charge. Arkansas previously used a five-year window for most offenses.³ Under House Bill 1062, the felony lookback now runs ten years for a fourth or fifth offense and twenty years for a sixth or subsequent offense.¹

Here is how that plays out. Say you were convicted in 2018 and again in 2020. Under the old five-year window, the 2018 case would have aged off by 2025. Under the current law, both still count. A new arrest in 2027 could be charged as a third offense rather than a first, turning a 24-hour minimum jail sentence into a 90-day one.

First-Offense Penalties

A standard first offense is an unclassified misdemeanor. You face a mandatory minimum of 24 hours in jail, up to one year, though a judge can substitute community service for the minimum. Fines run $150 to $1,000, plus a $300 court cost.³ Your license is suspended for six months. You must complete a substance abuse screening, assessment, and any recommended treatment, and attend a Victim Impact Panel.

If your BAC was 0.15% or higher, the fine range jumps to $400 through $3,000. A passenger under 16 triggers the same enhanced fine range and raises the minimum jail sentence from 24 hours to seven days. Either factor also extends the mandatory ignition interlock period from six months to one year.

Second-Offense Penalties

A second DWI is still an unclassified misdemeanor but carries a seven-day minimum jail sentence, fines between $400 and $3,000, and a 24-month license suspension.³ Community service can no longer be substituted for the minimum jail time. With a high BAC or a child passenger under 16, the fine range rises to $900 through $5,000 and the minimum jail sentence jumps to 30 days.

Third-Offense Penalties

A third DWI stays classified as a misdemeanor, but the minimum jail sentence is 90 days. Fines range from $900 to $5,000, and the license suspension lasts 30 months.³ If a child under 16 was in the vehicle, the minimum jail sentence rises to 120 days. A high BAC pushes fines to $2,000 through $10,000. This is the last level at which the charge remains a misdemeanor.

Felony DWI: Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Offenses

A fourth DWI within ten years of your first becomes an unclassified felony. The consequences escalate with each additional conviction:

Fourth offense: one to six years in prison and a four-year license revocation. With a child passenger under 16, the minimum prison term rises to two years.¹
Fifth offense: two to ten years in prison, within the same ten-year lookback. With a child passenger, the minimum rises to three years.¹
Sixth offense: a Class B felony, with a twenty-year lookback from the first offense. Class B felonies carry 5 to 20 years in prison and fines up to $15,000.¹

Refusing a Chemical Test

By driving on an Arkansas road, you’ve already given implied consent to a breath, blood, saliva, or urine test if an officer has reason to believe you’re intoxicated.⁴ Refusing doesn’t stop the prosecution. It triggers a separate administrative license suspension on top of any criminal penalties.

The suspension is 180 days for a first refusal and two years for a second refusal within five years. No restricted driving permit is available during a second-refusal suspension.⁵ Prosecutors can also introduce the refusal itself as evidence at trial.

Restricted License and Ignition Interlock

After a DWI suspension, you may qualify for a Special Ignition Interlock Restricted Driver’s License that lets you drive to work, school, and medical appointments. It requires a certified ignition interlock device in every vehicle you operate.⁶ The device measures your breath before the engine starts and is calibrated to lock you out at a BAC between 0.02% and 0.05%.

The interlock period matches your suspension length: six months for a standard first offense, doubling to one year if your BAC was 0.15% or higher. A third or subsequent offense triggers a mandatory interlock restriction regardless of circumstances.⁶ You pay for the device yourself. You also need to file SR-22 high-risk liability insurance and maintain it for three years after the conviction.

First-time offenders can petition the court for a waiver of the interlock requirement, though judges grant these sparingly. No waiver is available for repeat offenders.

CDL Consequences

If you hold a commercial driver’s license, a DWI can end your career, and this is true even when you were driving your personal car at the time. Federal regulations set a lower BAC threshold of 0.04% when you’re operating a commercial vehicle, and any DUI conviction in any vehicle counts as a major offense for CDL disqualification.⁷

A first DUI results in a one-year CDL disqualification. A second conviction, even years later and even in your personal vehicle, triggers a lifetime disqualification.⁷ States may reinstate a lifetime-disqualified driver after ten years if the person completes an approved rehabilitation program, but a single further conviction after reinstatement makes the ban permanent. Refusing a chemical test counts the same as a conviction for CDL purposes.

The Financial Cost Beyond Fines

Court-imposed fines are only part of the total. When you’re arrested, your vehicle is typically towed and impounded. Towing fees generally run $75 to $350, with daily storage adding $15 to $75. A three-day impound with administrative release fees can total $300 to $700 before you’ve stepped into a courtroom.

A private defense attorney for a first offense typically costs $2,000 to $5,000, with fees rising for cases involving high BAC, accidents, or prior offenses. Add ignition interlock costs of roughly $2.50 to $3.50 per day plus installation and removal, SR-22 insurance premiums that can increase your auto insurance by hundreds of dollars per year for three years, court-ordered treatment or education, and license reinstatement fees. All told, a first offense in Arkansas can run $5,000 to $10,000 or more once every expense is added together.

Collateral Consequences of a Felony Conviction

Federal law prohibits anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year in prison from possessing firearms or ammunition.⁸ A fourth-offense DWI qualifies, since it carries one to six years. If you own firearms, a felony DWI conviction means giving them up or facing separate federal charges.

International travel becomes complicated. Canada treats DUI as a potentially serious criminal offense under its immigration law and can deny entry at the border. Criminal rehabilitation (available five years after completing your sentence) or a temporary resident permit may allow entry, but neither is guaranteed.⁹

Expungement of a DWI Conviction

Arkansas allows misdemeanor DWI convictions to be expunged after five years from completion of the sentence. That covers first, second, and third offenses, since all three are misdemeanors. An expungement seals the conviction from most background checks. Felony DWI convictions (fourth offense and above) are not eligible under this provision, and the five-year clock doesn’t start until you’ve finished every part of the sentence, including probation and any court-ordered treatment.

1
FindLaw. Arkansas Code Title 5 Criminal Offenses – 5-65-111
2
Arkansas Highway Safety Office. Impaired Driving
3
Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration. DUI, DWI, BUI, BWI Offenses
4
Justia. Arkansas Code 5-65-202 – Implied Consent
5
Justia. Arkansas Code 5-65-205 – Refusal to Submit
6
Justia. Arkansas Code 5-65-118 – Additional Penalties – Ignition Interlock Devices
7
eCFR. 49 CFR 383.51 – Disqualification of Drivers
8
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 922 – Unlawful Acts
9
U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Entering Canada and the United States With DUI Offenses