The first 14 days after an OWI arrest in Michigan: a checklist

The first two weeks after a Michigan OWI arrest hold two different 14-day clocks. If the driver refused the evidential breath, blood or urine test, there are 14 days from the officer's written notice to request a Secretary of State hearing, or the license is suspended for 1 year (2 years for a second refusal within 7 years).^[2][3] Separately, a misdemeanor OWI case is to be arraigned in court within 14 days of the arrest.^[4] This checklist walks through those deadlines and the paperwork that comes with them, in roughly the order they arise.

It explains what the law provides; it does not tell anyone what to decide. The full sequence after arrest is described in what happens after an OWI arrest.

Step 1: Release from custody

• No appearance ticket. Michigan's appearance-ticket release rule does not apply to an operating-while-intoxicated offense, so the person is taken into custody rather than handed a ticket.^[9]
• Held until sober. If the officer believes the arrested person is under the influence, the person is held until in a proper condition to be released or until the next session of court.^[10]
• Interim bond. For a misdemeanor punishable by up to 1 year, a person may post an interim bond with the officer or sheriff when no magistrate is available, in an amount between 20% of the minimum fine and the maximum fine.^[11]
• Pending-test condition. If a roadside test detected alcohol or a drug and a chemical test is pending, a judge or magistrate may release the person on the condition of not driving under the influence; violating it means arrest without a warrant and no release before arraignment.^[12]

Step 2: Find and read the license paperwork

On a refusal, or when a test shows an unlawful alcohol content or a controlled substance, the officer confiscates the plastic license for the Secretary of State and, if the person is otherwise eligible, issues a temporary license or permit on a Secretary of State form.^[1] The "unlawful alcohol content" for this rule is 0.02 for a driver under 21, 0.04 in a commercial vehicle, and 0.08 for everyone else.^[13]

• How long the permit lasts. In a prosecuted case, until the charges are dismissed, the person is acquitted, or the license is suspended, restricted or revoked.^[14]
• Blood or urine pending. The permit notes that a test is pending; if the result is clean, the license is returned by first-class mail.^[15]
• Plates. When the offense is one that will require vehicle immobilization, such as a repeat OWI, the officer must destroy the registration plate and put on a temporary plate, which lasts until the charges are resolved.^[16]

Practical step: put every paper from the arrest in one folder and note the date printed on each. The documents to keep page explains what each one is.

Step 3: If there was a refusal, the 14-day hearing request

After a refusal, the officer must immediately give written notice that a hearing may be requested within 14 days of the date of the notice, that failing to request one will result in suspension, and that a lawyer is not required but is allowed.^[2]

1. Count from the notice date. The statute counts the 14 days from the date of the officer's written notice.^[2] A mailed request must be postmarked within 14 days; a faxed or hand-delivered request must arrive at the Lansing office within that time.^[17]
2. Know the consequence. Without a timely request, the Secretary of State suspends the license for 1 year, or 2 years for a second refusal within 7 years.^[3]
3. How requests are filed. Through the online Driver Appeal Integrated System (DAIS), or by mail, fax or email to the Office of Hearings and Administrative Oversight; requests cannot be made at Secretary of State branch offices.^[18]
4. What the hearing decides. Only four issues: reasonable grounds, arrest, whether a refusal was reasonable, and whether the driver was advised of the chemical-test rights.^[19]
5. Timing after a request. The hearing is to be scheduled within 45 days after the arrest, with at least 5 days' mailed notice, though missing those time limits is not a ground for any sanction.^[20]

There is no right to an appointed lawyer at a Secretary of State hearing, and hearing staff cannot give legal advice.^[21] The hearing itself is explained in the implied consent hearing, and the consequences of refusal in refusing a breath or blood test.

Step 4: The arraignment date

For misdemeanor OWI, the arraignment is to occur not more than 14 days after the arrest (or after a warrant is served, if later), and the court may not dismiss the case for missing that limit.^[4] The 14-day rule does not apply to felony OWI, where the arraignment sets a probable cause conference 7 to 14 days later and a preliminary examination 5 to 7 days after that.^[4][22]

• What the court must say. At a district court arraignment the defendant is told the offense, the maximum sentence, and the rights to a lawyer, to an appointed lawyer when applicable, and to a jury when required by law.^[23]
• A lawyer at arraignment. An arrested person is entitled to a lawyer's help at arraignment unless the person makes an informed waiver, or the court issues a personal bond and will not take a guilty or no-contest plea that day.^[24]
• Written not-guilty plea. The court may allow a not-guilty plea, or standing mute, by a written statement signed by the defendant and any defense attorney, without a formal arraignment.^[25]

More detail is on the arraignment page.

Step 5: Bond conditions

Unless an exception applies, the court must release the defendant on personal recognizance or an unsecured bond, conditioned on appearing, not leaving the state without permission and committing no crime.^[5] If that is not enough, conditions can include not using alcohol, a testing or monitoring program, treatment, surrendering the driver's license, and a curfew.^[6] MCL 765.6b also preserves a court's authority under other statutes and court rules to order a defendant to wear an electronic monitoring device, a term the statute defines to include a device that monitors blood alcohol content.^[26]

If a defendant fails to comply with release conditions, the court may issue an arrest warrant, revoke release and declare the bail forfeited.^[7] A party may ask the court with appellate jurisdiction to review a release decision, with no filing fee.^[27] See bond and release conditions.

Step 6: A lawyer

An indigent defendant has a right to an appointed lawyer whenever the charge requires a minimum jail term or the court might sentence to jail, even if suspended.^[8] The court refers the request to the local appointing authority for indigency screening where one exists, and being able to post bond does not make someone ineligible.^[28] According to the Michigan Indigent Defense Commission, a defendant who has not already been asked will be asked at arraignment whether an appointed lawyer is needed, and fills out a financial form the court provides.^[29] See getting a court-appointed lawyer and questions to ask a lawyer about an OWI charge.

Step 7: Keep the mail flowing and the court dates

• Address on file. Unless another method is specified, Secretary of State notices go by first-class mail to the address on its records, and mailed notice is complete 5 days after mailing.^[30]
• Missed court dates. If a person charged with an OWI-type offense fails to appear, the court mails a notice, and the license is suspended if the person does not appear within 7 days.^[31]
• The vehicle. While a vehicle has a temporary plate or is subject to immobilization or forfeiture, transferring it without a court order to a close relative such as a spouse, parent, sibling or child is a misdemeanor, as is transferring a vehicle to avoid forfeiture or buying another vehicle to get around immobilization.^[32]
• Video evidence. Police must keep evidentiary body-camera recordings at least 30 days, and longer while a criminal investigation or prosecution is ongoing.^[33]

What comes after day 14

In a misdemeanor case, the court must schedule a pretrial conference within 35 days of arrest (42 days where the district has only 1 judge sitting in more than 1 location), and the court orders the defendant to attend.^[34] The case is to be resolved within 77 days of arrest, except for delay caused by the unavailability of the defendant, a witness or evidence, an interlocutory appeal or exceptional circumstances (but not docket congestion), and missing the deadline is not a ground for dismissal.^[35] The full list of time limits, through sentencing, appeal, license restoration and set-aside, is on the OWI deadlines calendar. Drivers with a commercial license should also read CDL holders arrested for OWI, because an OWI or refusal in any vehicle affects commercial driving privileges.^[36]