A "wet reckless" in Florida is a plea to reckless driving under Florida Statute 316.192 in a case that started as a DUI. Florida has no separate wet reckless offense, so what you plead to is ordinary reckless driving, with the alcohol showing up in the sentence rather than in the charge. Two statutory limits decide whether the deal is even available: Florida Statute 316.656(2)(a) forbids a judge from accepting a plea to a lesser offense when a breath or blood test came back at 0.15 percent or higher, and 316.656(2)(b) forbids it in cases charged as DUI with serious bodily injury, DUI manslaughter or vehicular homicide.
The courts take DUI charges seriously, as they are a criminal traffic offense. Do not face a judge and courtroom alone if law enforcement arrests you on such charges. A DUI lawyer can review the stop, the testing and the breath or blood result, and negotiate the charge with the prosecutor.
Contact criminal defense attorney Matt Shafran at Weinstein Legal Team if you are facing DUI charges. Whether a reduction is on the table depends on the breath or blood result, the legality of the stop, how the testing was done and your record, and those are the first things a defense attorney reviews.
Plea Bargaining in Florida DUI Cases
To convict you of a DUI charge in the state of Florida, the prosecutor's office must provide substantial evidence to prove your guilt. In DUI cases this evidence is not always cut and dry. If a prosecutor's office does not believe they have enough proof to ensure a conviction, your lawyer may be able to get them to agree to a reduced charge of reckless driving instead.
Common instances where this scenario applies include:
- Your Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) was less than 0.08% at the time of your arrest.
- Police officers stopped you illegally yet determined you were under the influence.
- There is video footage that contradicts law enforcement's claims that you were impaired, such as passing a field sobriety test.
- Your Blood Alcohol Content test was administered improperly.
- There is a question of whether or not the breathalyzer device was properly calibrated at the time of use.
- You are a first-time offender.
These are all things that an experienced DUI or reckless driving defense lawyer will know to look for during the investigation, before your day in court. If possible, they may be able to arrange a plea deal with the prosecutor's office before you appear in front of a judge.
There are many benefits to pleading to a lesser charge of reckless driving instead of facing a conviction for driving under the influence. Your attorney will review these benefits with you carefully to ensure you understand the consequences you will face in regard to the plea deal.
Pleading to reckless driving instead of DUI also opens a door that a DUI closes. Florida Statute 316.656(1) bars any court from withholding adjudication on a DUI, so a DUI plea is always a conviction. Reckless driving is not on that list, so the judge can withhold adjudication, and a withhold is not a conviction. That single difference is what later decides whether the record can be sealed.
The Benefits of Pleading to a Wet Reckless in Florida
A wet reckless plea in Florida is still a criminal traffic offense, as is a DUI. Reckless driving is not graded as a first or second-degree misdemeanor at all. Florida Statute 316.192(2)(a) sets its own penalty for a first conviction: up to 90 days in jail, or a fine of $25 to $500, or both. A first DUI under Florida Statute 316.193(2)(a) carries up to 6 months and a fine of $500 to $1,000. That gap in exposure is the reason the plea is worth asking for.
A reckless driving conviction does not carry the license revocation that Florida Statute 322.28(2)(a)1. imposes on a first DUI conviction, which is at least 180 days and up to 1 year, and it does not carry the minimum 50 hours of community service that Florida Statute 316.193(6)(a) requires for a first DUI. The fine and the jail exposure are both lower.
It does not undo an administrative suspension. Under Florida Statute 322.2615 the officer suspends the license at the roadside for a breath or blood result of 0.08 or higher, or for a refusal, and that suspension runs through the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles on its own track whatever happens to the criminal charge. The DUI education course is not waived either. Florida Statute 316.192(5) says that if the court has reasonable cause to believe alcohol or a controlled substance contributed to the reckless driving, the court shall order the DUI program substance abuse education course and evaluation, and the department cancels the driving privilege of anyone who does not complete it. Insurance is a separate question your carrier decides.
All of these benefits make it essential that you hire an aggressive attorney to fight your case. Do not wait until your first court appearance. A criminal traffic defense attorney will begin working on your case to attempt a wet reckless plea bargain immediately. You may be able to avoid the steep consequences that come with a conviction for driving under the influence.
Wet Reckless Pleas and Background Checks
Yes. Reckless driving is a criminal traffic offense, so both the arrest and the disposition show up on a background check. What changes is what the record says. A reckless driving entry reads differently to an employer or a landlord than a DUI does, and unlike a DUI it can end in a withhold of adjudication.
That difference decides what you can do about the record later.
Whether the record can be cleared depends on how the case ended. Florida Statute 943.059(1)(b) allows sealing only for a person who has never been adjudicated guilty of a criminal offense, so a withhold of adjudication on the reckless charge can be sealed and a conviction cannot. Expunction under Florida Statute 943.0585(1) is narrower still, and generally requires that no charging document was filed, or that the charge was dismissed, dropped by the state, or ended in an acquittal. Ask your attorney which of the two your disposition leaves open before you agree to anything.
Hiring an Attorney for a Wet Reckless Plea
If you are facing charges for driving under the influence, hire a wet reckless driving Florida attorney immediately. Contact Matt Shafran at Weinstein Legal Team for a free case evaluation. Our phones are available 24-hours a day, 7-days a week.
Do not simply accept a DUI charge. You may be able to make a plea bargain for a lesser charge that can save you from many of the steep consequences. However, only an experienced criminal defense attorney will know how to properly fight your case.
Each day that goes by is a day the prosecutor's office spends building its case. Your defense should be running on the same clock.
Call Matt Shafran at Weinstein Legal Team in Florida today at 888-626-1108.
