OWI, DUI, DWI and OUIL: What Michigan Calls Drunk Driving

Michigan's drunk-driving statute does not call the offense "DUI" or "DWI." The crime is called operating while intoxicated, or OWI, and it is found in section 625 of the Michigan Vehicle Code, MCL 257.625.^[1][2] "Drunk driving," "DUI" and "DWI" are the everyday words people search for, and this hub uses them that way, but the legal terms come from MCL 257.625. The letters "DWI" do appear in one place in Michigan law: the name of the "DWI/sobriety court," a specialized court docket for alcohol offenders.^[12]

What "OWI" means in the statute

MCL 257.625(1) says a person, whether licensed or not, may not operate a vehicle on a highway or other place open to the general public or generally accessible to motor vehicles, including parking areas, if the person is "operating while intoxicated."^[1] The statute then defines that phrase three ways:^[3]

1. Under the influence of alcoholic liquor, a controlled substance, another intoxicating substance, or a combination.^[3]
2. An alcohol content of 0.08 grams or more per 100 milliliters of blood, per 210 liters of breath, or per 67 milliliters of urine.^[3]
3. An alcohol content of 0.17 grams or more, the high BAC tier.^[3]

The Court of Appeals describes OWI as three elements: the defendant operated a motor vehicle, on a highway or other place open to the public or generally accessible to motor vehicles, while under the influence or with an unlawful bodily alcohol content, and it notes that the third element can be proved either way.^[13] The guide on what "under the influence" means explains the impairment route, and Michigan's blood alcohol limits covers the number route.

The names you will hear, and what each one refers to

Several short labels come from the statute, the model jury instructions, or older case law. The table maps each one to its legal source.

Term	What it refers to	Where it comes from
OWI	Operating while intoxicated: under the influence, 0.08 or more, or 0.17 or more.[3]	MCL 257.625(1)
High BAC, "super drunk," OWIHBAC	Operating with an alcohol content of 0.17 grams or more; "super drunk" is a popular name, and the jury instruction calls it OWIHBAC.[3][14]	MCL 257.625(1)(c); M Crim JI 15.1
OWVI	Operating while visibly impaired: ability to operate visibly impaired because of alcohol, drugs or both.[4]	MCL 257.625(3)
OWACS, "zero tolerance" for drugs	Operating with any amount of a Schedule 1 controlled substance or cocaine in the body.[5]	MCL 257.625(8); M Crim JI 15.4
Under-21 zero tolerance	A driver under 21 with an alcohol content of 0.02 up to 0.08, or any alcohol from drinking outside a religious ceremony.[6]	MCL 257.625(6)
Commercial 0.04	Operating a commercial motor vehicle at 0.04 or more but under 0.08.[15]	MCL 257.625m
OUIL	Older name for operating under the influence of liquor, used in older cases for today's under-the-influence OWI.[7]	Older statute and case law
"OWI" in older cases	Operating while impaired, a lower "impaired" threshold that the courts treated as a lesser offense of OUIL.[7]	People v Lambert (1975); Oxendine (1999)
DUI, DWI	Everyday terms and other states' names; the heading of MCL 257.625 does not use them.[2]	Common usage

Why the exact charge name matters

Each label carries different consequences. A complaint that says "OWI" without a subsection does not tell you which tier is charged, and the difference shows up in jail exposure, fines, license sanctions and points.

First offense	Maximum jail	Fine	License sanction	Points
OWI (under the influence or 0.08)	93 days[8]	$100 to $500[8]	180-day suspension; no restricted license in the first 30 days[10]	6[16]
High BAC (0.17 or more)	180 days[17]	$200 to $700[17]	1-year suspension; no restricted license in the first 45 days[18]	6[16]
OWVI	93 days[9]	Up to $300[9]	90 days, restricted license possible for all of it (180 days if caused by drugs)[11]	4[19]
Under-21 zero tolerance	None for a first offense[20]	Up to $250[20]	30 days, restricted license possible[21]	4[19]

A high BAC conviction also brings a court order to complete a rehabilitative program of at least one year, even on a first offense.^[22] The full set of sanctions is in the OWI penalties chart and the guide to first-offense OWI penalties.

The plea rules also turn on the charge name. When someone is charged with OWI, OWVI, OWI causing death or serious impairment, child endangerment, a drug offense under 625(8) or the commercial 0.04 offense, the court may not accept a plea to the under-21 zero-tolerance offense in exchange for dismissing the original charge, although the court may still dismiss on the prosecutor's motion.^[23]

Same letters, different offenses: a trap in older cases

If you read Michigan cases from before the current statute, be careful with abbreviations. In older opinions such as People v Lambert and Oxendine v Secretary of State, "OUIL" meant operating under the influence and "OWI" meant the former offense of operating while impaired.^[7] The courts held that the impaired offense, defined as driving with less ability than an ordinary, careful and prudent driver, was a lesser included offense of OUIL.^[7] Today, "OWI" means the offense in MCL 257.625(1), and the closest modern match for the old "impaired" offense is OWVI under MCL 257.625(3).^[3][4]

Jury instruction numbers changed as well. Chapter 15 of the model criminal jury instructions was rewritten and renumbered in February 2021, so M Crim JI 15.1 is now high BAC, 15.2 is OWI, 15.3 is OWVI and 15.4 is the any-amount drug offense.^[14] Older sources that cite different numbers are using the pre-2021 scheme. See the guide to the OWI jury instructions.

Other states' DUI and DWI convictions

Michigan's different vocabulary does not mean an out-of-state DUI is ignored. For OWI enhancement, a "prior conviction" includes a conviction under a law of another state, a federal law, or a local ordinance that substantially corresponds to Michigan law.^[24] The Secretary of State likewise suspends a license on receiving a record of a substantially corresponding out-of-state conviction.^[25] The guide to how prior convictions are counted explains the lookback windows.

Boats, snowmobiles, ORVs and aircraft use their own statutes

Section 625 applies to any "vehicle," a word the Vehicle Code defines broadly.^[26][27] Impaired operation of some other machines is covered by separate laws with their own wording. Operating a motorboat while under the influence, at 0.08 or more, or with any amount of a Schedule 1 substance or cocaine is a crime under MCL 324.80176.^[28] Snowmobiles have a parallel offense under MCL 324.82127 for operating under the influence, at 0.08 or more, or with any amount of a Schedule 1 substance or cocaine.^[29] For aircraft, Michigan's Aeronautics Code sets a 0.02 limit and an 8-hour rule after drinking.^[30] See boating under the influence and snowmobiles, ORVs and other vehicles.

Where to go next in this hub

If you have paperwork from an arrest or a court, find the subsection number first and then read the guide for that offense. The pages below are a starting point:

• How MCL 257.625 is organized, a subsection-by-subsection map.
• The high BAC ("super drunk") law.
• Operating while visibly impaired.
• Driving under the influence of drugs.
• The under-21 zero-tolerance law.
• The glossary of Michigan OWI terms.